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H  I  STO  RY 


GERMAN    SETTLEMENTS 


AND  OF  THE 


lfitt|eran  tf Ijurcl 


NORTH   AND  SOUTH  CAROLINA, 

FROM    THE    EARLIEST    PERIOD    OF    THE    COLONIZATION 

OF   THE  DUTCH,    GERMAN  AND  SWISS  SETTLERS 

TO  THE   CLOSE   OF   THE  FIRST  HALF  OF 

THE  PRESENT  CENTURY. 


G.    D.    BERNHEIM, 

PASTOR  OF  ST.  PAUL'S  EVANGELICAL  LUTHEKAN  CUURCII,  WILMINGTON,  N.  C. 


"•LOOK  UNTO  THE  ROCK   WHENCE  YE  AEE  HEWN." 

—Isaiah  51: 1. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
THE    LUTHERAN    BOOK    STORP; 

117   NORTH  SIXTH  STREET. 

1872. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1872, 

By  a.  D.  BERNHEIM, 

III  the  Oflfice  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D    C. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 
SHERMAN   &    CO.,    PRINTERS. 


TO 

THE     MEMORY 

OF 

Rev.   ERNEST    LEWIS    HAZELIUS,    D.  D., 

AND  TO 

Rev,  JOHN  BACHMAN,  D.D.,  LL.D., 

STILL   LIVING, 

TO   WHOM   THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH   IN   THE  CAROLINAS  IS  GREATLY 
INDEBTED  FOR   ITS   PRESERVATION  AND  PROSPERITY, 

THESE    PAGES 

ARE    RESPECTFULLY    DEDICATED, 

BY 

THE  AUTHOR. 


PREFACE. 


An  historical  work  requires  no  haste  in  its  production,— 
it  should  be  the  creature  of  time,  inasmuch  as  the  arrange- 
ment of  material,  the  weighing  of  testimony,  and  the  search 
for  missing  links  in  the  chain  of  narrative,  all  require  time. 
That  the  historical  contribution  which  is  herewith  offered 
to  the  public  has  not  been  hastily  prepared,  nor  unadvisedly 
thrust  upon  the  reader's  notice,  may  be  seen  from  the  fol- 
lowing statements. 

In  the  year  1851,  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  South  Carolina, 
by  resolution,  made  it  the  duty  of  the  author  to  gather 
together  a  copy  of  all  its  printed  minutes,  have  them  prop- 
erly bound,  and  place  the  bound  volumes  in  the  library  of 
its  Theological  Seminary.  In  so  doing,  the  author  became 
interested  in  the  records  of  Synod,  provided  a  set  of  dupli- 
cate copies  for  himself,  and  arranged  certain  tables  of 
statistics  of  that  Synod,  exhibiting  the  gradual  increase  of 
the  Church,  the  date  of  each  minister's  licensure  and  ordi- 
nation, &c.,  &c.,  and  had  these  written  statistics  bound 
with  his  volumes  of  the  Synod's  minutes,  merely  for  his 
own  private  use  and  future  reference.  A  prominent  min- 
ister of  that  Synod  happening  to  overlook  these  statistics, 
suggested  the  propriety  of  their  publication.  To  which  the 
author  replied,  that  it  might  be  done,  provided  the  minutes 
of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  could  also  be  procured,  and 
similar  statistical  tables  be  arranged  from  them,  when 
both  could  be  published  at  the  same  time. 

Kot  long  afterwards,  in  1858,  the  author  was  called  to 
reside  in  North  Carolina,  when  he  commenced  collecting 
the  minutes  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  that  State  also,  and 


VI  PREFACE. 

found  such  a  large  amount  of  additional  historical  docu- 
ments, that  he  became  exceedingly  interested  in  the  search, 
and  the  labor  has  been  to  him  a  recreation  and  a  pleasure 
rather  than  a  wearisome  toil.  Public  libraries  were  next 
visited  ;  the  records  of  the  Secretaries  of  State  in  the  Capitol 
buildings  of  N'orth  and  South  Carolina  were  examined ;  each 
colony  of  Germans  in  the  two  Carolinas  was  traced  to  its 
origin ;  missionary  journals,  discovered  to  have  been  sent 
from  the  first  ministers  in  North  Carohna  to  Germany 
and  there  published,  but  no  longer  known  to  have  any  exist- 
ence, were  sought  after  and  obtained  in  Europe ;  all  of 
which  produced  a  collection  of  historical  material  greater 
than  was  at  first  believed  to  be  possible. 

During  the  years,  from  1861  to  1864,  the  author  pub- 
lished, from  the  material  then  on  hand,  seventy- two  "His- 
torical Sketches"  in  the  columns  of  the  ^''Southern  Lu- 
tlieran,'>''  which  were  received  with  so  much  favor,  that  un- 
solicited suggestions  came  from  Eev.  John  Bachman,  D.D., 
LL.D.,  and  from  editors  of  several  Southern  journals,  to 
have  these  "Historical  Sketches  published  in  a  more  con- 
venient and  durable  form ;"  besides,  letters  were  received 
from  private  parties  urging  the  same  thing.  On  a  visit  to 
the  ISTorth  at  the  close  of  the  war,  these  "Sketches"  were 
exhibited  to  Kev.  Dr.  Hawks,  of  N^ew  York,  author  of  the 
History  of  North  Carolina,  and  to  Eev.  Dr.  Krauth,  of 
Philadelphia,  and  the  same  suggestion  was  repeated  by 
both  those  learned  gentlemen. 

And  now,  believing  that  the  information  contained  in 
this  work  is  too  valuable  to  be  lost ;  believing  also,  that  the 
ripe  and  scholarly  judgment  of  others  should  not  be  disre- 
garded ;  believing,  that  the  labor  of  twenty-one  years,  the 
leisure  time  of  which  was  mostly  spent  in  gathering  to- 
gether the  materials  for  this  work,  should  not  be  spent  in 
vain ;  and  lastly,  believing  that  some  good  towards  the 
advancing  of  the  interests  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  will 
thereby  be  eflfected,  and  that  a  generous  public  will  so  re- 
gard this  work,  these  pages  are  sent  upon  the  world  with 


PREFACE. 


vn 


the  earnest  hope  that  they  may  accomphsh  this  their  mis- 
sion. 

But  probably  the  most  important  question  is :  Is  this 
book  a  rehable  historical  work  ?  To  which  the  author  re- 
plies, that  it  is  as  much  so,  as  human  labor  and  patient 
toil  can  make  it.  This  work  has  been  altogether  a  labor  of 
love,  hence  no  pains  were  spared  to  make  it  eminently 
correct  and  exact  in  dates,  names,  localities,  &c.  That  it 
occasionally  comes  in  conflict  with  other  historical  authori- 
ties could  not  be  avoided,  as  the  author  felt  assured  that 
Church  records,  missionary  reports,  records  of  the  Councils 
of  State,  minutes  of  Synod,  private  journals  and  the  like 
sources  of  information,  produced  at  the  time  wlien  the 
events  occurred,  are  all  of  them  more  relial)le  than  the 
statements  made  by  authors,  who  had  not  these  records  at 
their  command,  however  highly  those  authors  may  other- 
wise be  regarded. 

Some  of  them  were  unacquainted  with  the  German  lan- 
guage, German  characteristics,  and  the  religion  of  the  Ger- 
man settlers,  hence  originated  the  errors  that  are  sometimes 
found  in  American  histories  in  reference  to  the  German 
colonists. 

It  was  deemed  unnecessary  to  furnish  a  list  on  one  or 
more  separate  pages  of  the  sources  whence  the  materials 
for  this  work  were  derived  ;  but,  in  order  to  remove  all 
doubt  concerning  the  reliability  of  this  work,  it  was 
thought  to  be  more  serviceable  to  the  reader  to  mention 
the  names  of  authorities  on  the  page  where  such  authors 
and  records  are  quoted. 

There  is  a  niche  in  the  history  of  N'orth  and  South  Caro- 
lina that  has  never  been  filled.  It  is  a  well-known  fact 
that  these  two  Provinces  were  largely  settled  by  German 
colonists,  and  yet  their  history  has  hitherto  never  been  fully 
written.  In  the  various  histories  of  North  Carolina  we 
have  extended  accounts  of  the  German  settlements  at  Xew- 
berne  and  at  Salem,  but  of  the  other  German  settlers,  who 
located  themselves  in  the  central  and  western  parts  of  tlie 
State,  nothing  is  said,  although  they  comprise  more  than 


VIU  PREFACE. 

three-fourths  of  the  German  population.  South  CaroUna 
historians  have  been  equally  remiss ;  with  the  exception  of 
the  Purysburg  and  the  Hard  Labor  Creek  settlements,  very 
little  is  said  concerning  those  colonies  from  Germany  and 
Switzerland,  which  were  spread  over  a  large  portion  of  the 
interior  of  that  Province.  There  can  be  but  one  solution 
of  this  apparent  neglect,  and  that  is,  the  records  of  these 
German  settlements  were  couched  in  a  language  foreign  to 
those  historical  writers.  It  is  hoped  that  the  omission  has 
been,  at  least,  largely  supplied.  A  few  more  years,  and 
the  records  of  the  history  of  our  German  forefathers  would 
have  passed  beyond  human  reach.  In  view  of  this  fact, 
how  forcible  are  the  remarks  of  Dr.  Eamsay  in  the  preface 
to  his  "History  of  South  Carolina:"  "Every  day  that 
minute  local  histories  of  these  States  are  deferred  is  an  in- 
jury to  posterity,  for,  by  means  thereof,  more  of  that  knowl- 
edge which  ought  to  be  transmitted  to  them  will  be  irre- 
coverably lost. " 

The  author  confesses  to  a  few  omissions  in  this  work, 
and  that  this  history  has  not  been  extended  to  the  present 
time.  His  reason  for  the  latter  fact  is.  that  occurrences  so 
recent  can  scarcely  be  regarded  as  history,  until  they  have 
been  mellowed  by  age — have  passed  into  perspective — when 
"  distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view."  At  all  events, 
the  author  prefers  to  close  at  a  point,  where  he  will  not  be 
obliged  to  record  occurrences  in  which  he  was  more  or  less 
personally  interested. 

The  first  omission  consists  in  the  want  of  an  extended 
account  of  the  ecclesiastical  difficulty  that  arose  in  the  year 
1819,  between  the  North  Carolina  Synod  and  the  ministers, 
who  afterwards  formed  the  Tennessee  Synod.  In  this  the 
object  was,  not  to  open  afresh  those  wounds  which  have 
been  more  than  fifty  years  in  healing.  Let  us  by  all  means 
have  a  hopeful  future,  and  let  us  throw  no  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  "  the  dead  past  burying  its  dead." 

The  second  omission  is  a  trifling  one,  namely,  the  pass- 
ing in  silence  the  efforts  made  in  1842  by  the  North  and 
South  Carolina  Synods  to  celebrate  the  supposed  centenary 


PREFACE.  ix 

anniversary  of  the  introduction  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  America.  To  the  South  this  celebration  was  pecuharly 
anaclironistic.  German  Lutlieranism  was  estabhshed  in 
Pennsylvania  in  1742, but  it  existed  in  the  South  eight  years 
earlier,  when  Kevs.  Bolzius  and  Gronau  commenced  their 
labors  in  the  German  (Salzburg)  colony  at  Ebenezer,  Geor- 
gia, A.D.  1734,  and  in  the  CaroUnas,  five  years  sooner, 
when  Rev.  Giessendanner  labored  for  the  Germans  in 
Orangeburg,  S.  C,  in  1737. 

The  author  is  aware  that  this  historical  work,  especially 
in  its  detailed  ecclesiastical  information,  must  be  interest- 
ing chiefly  to  the  members  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the 
Carolinas  ;  it  is  hoped,  nevertheless,  that  the  general  reader 
will  gather  from  it  much  information  which  is  not  to  be 
obtained  from  any  other  source. 

G.  D.  Berniieim. 

Wilmington,  N.  C, 

June  10th,  1872. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


An  Account  of  the  Early  Colonization  of  the  Dutch, 
German  and  ywiss  Settlers  in  the  Carolinas. 


PAGE 


Section  1.  The  Causes,  in  general,  which  led  to  the  Colo 

nization  of  America  with  European  settlers, 
Section  2.  The  Religious  Persecutions  in  Europe  as  another 

effective  cause  of  Emigration  to  America,  . 
Section  3.  The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession, 
Section  4.  The  Mission  Societies  established  in  Europe  for 

the  benefit  of  the  early  settlers  in  America, 
Section  5.  John  Lederer's  Explorations,  A.D.  1G70, 
Section  6.    The  Dutch  Colony  of  Lutherans  on  James 
Island,  South  Carolina,  A.D.  1674,     .... 
Section  7.  The  Colony  of  Palatinate  and  Swiss  Germans 

in  Newberne,  North  Carolina,  A.D.  1710,  . 
Section  8.  The  German  settlers  in  Charleston,  S.  C, 
Section  9.  The  Swiss  Colony  at  Purysburg,  S.  C,  A.D 

1732, 

Section  10.  The  German  and  Swiss  colonists  of  Orange 

burg,  S.  C,  A.D.  1735, 

Section  11.  The  German  settlers  of  Saxe-Gotha  Township 

now  Lexington  County,  S.  C,  A.D.  1737, 
Section  12.  The  German  settlers  from  Pennsylvania  in 

Central  North  Carolina,  A.D.  1750,    . 
Section  13.  The  Moravians  at  Salem,  N.  C,  A.D.  1753 
Section  14.  The  German  Lutheran  colony  at  Hard  Labor 

Creek,  Abbeville  County,  S.  C,  A.D.  1763  and  1764,     161 


30 
37 

46 

49 

56 

67 
81 


99 

126 

148 
154 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Section  15.    Other  German   Settlements,  particularly  in 

South  Carolina, 167 

Section  16.  Hessian  Deserters  during  the  Kevolution,       .     171 

CHAPTER  11. 

Condition  and  History  or  the  German  Colonies  in  the 
Carolinas  to  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War. 

Section  1.  A  brief  review  of  the  planting  of  the  different 

German  colonies  in  North  and  South  Carolina,         .     175 

Section  2.  Trials  and  Difficulties  of  the  Early  Settlers,     .     181 

Section  3.  Character,  occupation  and  condition  of  the  Ger- 
man settlers  in  the  Carolinas, 185 

Section  4.  Great  want  of  the  means  of  grace  among  the 

early  German  colonists  in  the  Carolinas,     .         .         .     191 

Section  5.  An  account  of  the  Weber  Heres}^     .         .         .     195 

Section  6.  History  of  St.  John's  Lutheran  Church,  Charles- 
ton, S.  C,  to  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  W"ar,    .     205 

Section  7.  The  Lutheran  Church  in  Amelia  Township, 

Orangeburg  District  (County),  S.  C,  ...     224 

Section  8.  The  Lutheran  churches  in  Saxe-Gotha  Town- 
ship, Lexington  District  (County),  S.  C,  .         .         .     229 

Section  9.  Other  German  churches  in  South  Carolina,      .     233 

Section  10.  Early  History  of  St.  John's  Lutheran  Church, 

Salisbury,  N.  C, 239 

Section  11.  Early   History    of    Organ    Church,    Rov/an 

County,  N.C., 243 

Section  12.  Early  History  of  St.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus 

County,  N.  C, 246 

Section  13.  The  Delegation  sent  from  North  Carolina  to 
Europe  for  Pastors  and  Teachers,  and  the  Subsequent 
Organization  of  the  Helmstaedt  Mission  Society,        .     253 

Section  14.  The  Labors  of  Revs.  Nussmann  and  Arndt  in 

North  Carolina, 269 

Section  15.  Character  of  the  Lutheran  Ministry  in  the 
Carolinas  previous  to  the  Revolutionary  War — Their 
Piety,  Learning,  Firm  Adherence  to  the  Confessions 
of  their  Church,  Faithfulness  in  the  Discharge  of 
their  Ministerial  Duties — Liturgical  Worship,  &c.,  .     262 


CONTENTS.  Xiii 

PAGE 

Section  16.  Gradual  Improvement  of  the  Condition  of  the 
German  Colonies  and  of  their  Churches  in  the  Caro- 
linas,  and  Bright  Prospects  for  the  Future,        .         .     207 

Section  17.  The  Eftect  of  the  Kevolutionary  War  upon 

the  German  Settlements  and  their  Churches,      .         .     209 

CHAPTER  III. 
History  of   the    Lutheran  Church    in   the  Carolinas 

FROM    the     close     OF     THE    IIeVOLUTIONARY    WaR,    A.D. 

1783,  TO  THE  Organization   of   the  Synod  of  North 
Carolina,  A.D.  1803,  embracing  a  Period  of  Twenty  • 
Years. 

Section  1.  State  of  the  German  Colonies  and  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution,    .         .     274 

Section  2.  Reorganization  of  Ecclesiastical  Aflairs  in  the 

Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas,     ....     278 

Section  3.  Arrival  of  Rev.  John  Charles  Faber — Reunion 
of  the  North  Carolina  Churches  with  the  Parent 
Church  in  Germany — The  North  Carolina  Catechism, 
published  by  Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen;  and  Rev.  Daser's 
Report  to  the  Helmstaedt  Fathers,      ....     281 

Section  4.  The  Corpus  Evangelicum  or  Unio  Ecclosias- 
tica  in  South  Carolina,  and  the  Ordination  of  Rev.  J. 
G.  Bamberg, 288 

Section  5.  The  Act  of  Incorporation  of  the  fifteen  Ger- 
man Churches  in  the  Interior  of  South  Carolina,       .     305 

Section  6.  Arrival  of  Revs.  Bernhardt,  Storch  and  Rosch- 

en  in  North  Carolina,  A.D.  1787  and  1788,         .         .     311 

Section  7.  The  Helmstaedt  Mission  Society— Letters  from 
Revs.  Nussmann,  Storch  and  Roschen,  published  in 
the  Helmstaedt  Reports,  indicating  the  Condition  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina  during  the 
years  1788  and  1789, 322 

Section  8.  Farther  intelligence  from  St.  John's  and  Organ 
Churches,  and  a  Ministerial  Assembly  in  North  Caro- 
lina, called  to  ordain  the  Rev.  Robert  Johnson  Miller,     335 

Section  9.  Death  of  Revs.  Nussmann  and  Martin— Resig- 


XIV  CONTENTS. 


nation  of  Kev.  John  Charles  Taber — Eemoval  of  Rev. 
Bernhardt  to  South  Carolina — Return  of  Rev.  Rosch- 
en  to  Germany — Arrival  of  Revs.  Paul  and  Philip 
Henkel, .     340 

Section  10.  St.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus  County,  N.  C, 
after  Rev.  Nussmann's  Death— Report  of  Rev.  Storch 
to  Dr.  Yelthusen — Decline  of  the  German  Reformed 
Church  in  South  Carolina, 346 

Section  11.  The  great  religious  revival  of  the  years  1800 
and  1801,  which  swept  over  the  United  States  ;  reports 
of  Revs.  Storch  and  Henkel  concerning  it,         .         .     350 

Section  12.    Organization  of  the   Evangelical   Lutheran 

Synod  of  ]S[orth  Carolina,  A.D.  1803,  .        .        .     355 

CHAPTER  lY. 

History  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas 
Continued,  from  the  Organization  of  the  North 
Carolina  Synod,  A.D.  1803,  to  the  Formation  or  the 
First  Lutheran  General  Synod  in  America,  A.D. 
1820;  Embracing  a  Period  of  Seventeen  Yea^s. 

Section  1.  Condition  of   the  Lutheran  Church  in  South 

Carolina  in  the  year  1803, 359 

Section  2.  Henkel's  report  on  the  condition  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  North  Carolina  in  the  year  1806,    .     366 

Section  3.  Extracts  from  the  First  Minutes  of  the  North 

Carolina  Synod,  from  A.D.  1803  to  1810,   .         .         .372 

Section  4.  Missionary  tours  of   Revs.    Miller,  Franklow 

and  Scherer, 378 

Section  5.  Emigration  from    North    Carolina  to  several 

new  States  and  Territories, 392 

Section  6.  Additional  extracts  from  the  Minutes  of  the 
North  Carolina  Synod  from  1811  to  1815,  exhibiting 
the  Rapid  Increase  of  its  Influence,  the  Extension  of 
its  Borders,  and  its  great  want  of  Ministers,      .         .     395 

Section  7.  Origin  and  History  of  several  new  Congrega- 
tions established  in  North  and  South  Carolina,  .     401 

Section  8.  Continued  history  of  several  of  the  older  Lu- 
theran Congregations  in  the  Carolinas,       .         .         .     411 


CONTENTS.  XV 

Section  9.  Arrival  of  Rev.  John  Bachman  as  pastor  of  St. 
John's  Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  and 
his  Keport  on  the  State  of  the  Country  and  the  Condi- 
tion of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America  in  the  year 
1815, 415 

Section  10.  The  Ordination  Question,  and  Opposition  to 

the  Licensure  of  Candidates  for  the  Ministry,     .         .     425 

Section  11.  The  Literary  Institution  in  Tennessee  for  the 
Education  of  Ministers,  and  the  Publication  by  au- 
thority of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  of  a  book,  called 
"Luther," 429 

Section  12.  The  Convention  which  was  called  for  the  Pur- 
pose of  Organizing  a  General  Synod,  ....     435 

Section  13.  The  First  Rupture  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
America,  and  the  subsequent  Formation  of  the  Ten- 
nessee Synod,  A.D.  1819  and  1820,     ....     440 

CHAPTER  V. 

From   the   Organization    of   the   Tennessee   Synod   to 

THE  Establishment  of  the  Theol'ogical  Seminary 

at  Lexington,  South  Carolina,  A.D.  1833. 

Section  1.  A  Glimpse  into  the  History  of  some  of  the 

Older  Congregations, 44b 

Section  2.  Fraternal  Union  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
with  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Convention  of  North 
Carolina, ^'^' 

Section  3.  Rev.  John  Bachman's  Labors  in  Savannah  and 

Ebenezer,  Georgia, ^'^"^ 

Section  4.  Organization  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  South 

Carolina,  A.D.  1824, .467 

Section  5.  Removals  to  the  West,  and  Missionary  Labors 
of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in  Illinois  and  other 

o^  i.  .         •     470 

States, 

Section  6.  Rapid  Progress  of  the  South  Carolina  Synod, 
and  the  Missionary  Labors  of  Revs.  Scheck,  Schwartz, 
and  W.  D.  Strobel, ^'^^ 

Section  7.  Death  of  Rev.  Charles  A.  G.  Storch  in  1831, 
and  arrival  of  other  Lutheran  Ministers  in  North 
Carolina, 


XVI  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Section  8.  Principal  Transactions  of  the  Tennessee  Synod, 

from  1820  to  1833, 485 

Section  9.  Establishment  of  a  Theological  Seminary  in 
South  Carolina,  under  the  Professorship  of  Kev.  John 
G.  Schwartz,  A.D.  1830, 489 

Section  10.  New  Churches  Erected  in  South  Carolina; 
and  the  Early  Deaths  of  Eevs.  Wingard,  Schwartz, 
Bergman  and  Daniel  Dreher,      .....     497 

Section  11,  Pounding  of  the  Theological  Seminary  at 
Lexington,  S  C,  and  arrival  of  Rev.  E.  L.  Hazelius, 
D.D.,  as  Professor  of  Theology,  ....     507 

CHAPTER  VI. 
History   of    the   Lutheran   Church   in  the  Carolinas 

CONTINUED    to    THE    ClOSE    OF    THE    YeAR    1850. 

Section  1.  Condition  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North 

and  South  Carolina  in  1834, 512 

Section  2.  Rev.  Daniel  Jenkins'  Revivals  in  North  Caro- 
lina— Commissioners  sent  by  the  South  Carolina 
Synod  to  the  North  Carolina  Synod  with  Proposals 
in  behalf  of  the  Lexington  Theological  Seminary — 
Death  of  Rev.  Gottlieb  Shober,  .....     516 

Section  3.  Increase  of  Lutheran  Ministers  in  the  Caroli- 
nas— Establishment  of  New  Congregations — Visit  of 
Rev.  Dr.  Bachman  to  Europe, 520 

Section  4.  Settlement  of  North  Germans  in  Southern 
Cities — Organization  and  Early  History  of  St.  Mat- 
thew's German  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church , Charles- 
ton, S.  C, 529 

Section  5.  Formation  of  the  Western   Virginia  Synod ; 

and  Death  of  Rev.  Henry  Graeber,    ....     533 

Section  6.  Endowment  of  a  Second  Professorship  in  the 
Theological  Seminary  at  Lexington,  S.  C. — Memoir 
of  Henry  Miiller,  Sr., 538 

Section  7.  Colony  of  German  Settlers  at  Walhalla,  S.  C. — 
Additional  New  Congregations  Organized — The  Mis- 
sissippi and  Texas  Missions,         .....     544 

Section  8.  State  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas, 

in  the  Tear  1850, 549 

Section  9.  Concluding  Remarks, 554 


HISTORY 


OF  THE 

lerMii  |ettleiiieiits  aM  tlie  litleran  rfliircli 


NOETH  AKD  SOUTH  CAKOLIl!^A. 


CHAPTER  I. 

AN    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    EARLY    COLONIZATION    OF    THE 

DUTCH,    GERMAN,    AND    SWISS    SETTLERS 

IN    THE    CAROLINAS. 

Section  1.   The  causes^  in  general^  which  led  to  the 
colonization  of  America  with  Euroi^ean  settlers. 

Tht^.  memory  of  the  early  settlers  of  America 
should  ever  be  regarded  as  sacred;  it  was  their 
courageous  hearts  or  conscientious  convictions  of 
duty  that  led  them  to  venture  upon  the  dangers 
of  a  long  and  tedious  voj^age  across  the  Atlantic, 
and  to  endure  the  perils  and  hardships  of  an  in- 
hospitable wilderness,  which  greeted  them  upon 
their  arrival  in  this  country.  To  them  America 
owes  the  debt  of  gratitude  for  having  planted  the 
"westward  star  of  empire"  on  its  shores;  for 
having  introduced  the  dawn  of  civilization  on 
this  continent,  where  brutal  savages,  always  at 

3 


26  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

war  with  themselves,  and  threatening  each  other's 
destruction,  formerly  roamed  unrestrained  over 
its  wide  and  trackless  forests;  for  having  borne 
the  standard  of  Christianit}^  to  this  vast  country, 
where  once  the  curses  of  idolatry  hung  like  a 
funeral  pall  over  its  future  progress  and  prosperity. 
In  such  a  wilderness,  and  under  man}^  adverse  and 
dangerous  circumstances,  our  adventurous  or  pious 
forefathers  made  their  homes  and  reared  their 
hardy  families ;  well  may  those  early  settlers,  in 
more  senses  than  one,  be  denominated  the  fathers 
of  this — their  adopted — country. 

The  causes  which  induced  the  early  settlers  of 
America  to  leave  their  native  homes  and  seek  an 
abode  in  the  Far  West,  across  the  wide  Atlantic, 
which,  on  account  of  its  dangers,  and  a  long, 
tedious,  and  expensive  voyage,  severed  them  for- 
ever from  all  that  they  once  held  dear,  were  nu- 
merous and  of  great  variety;  but  the  principal  of 
these  causes  of  emigration  shall  be  given  and  de- 
scribed in  the  following  narrative. 

Amid  the  over-abundant  population  of  Europe, 
crowded  within  a  small  area  of  productive  land, 
there  always  existed,  for  many  centuries  past,  a 
large  proportion  of  inhabitants  of  every  class  of 
society,  whose  pecuniary  circumstances  ever  for- 
bade them  to  arrive  at  the  condition  of  competency 
and  wealth  in  the  ordinary  pursuits  of  life;  the 
titled  nobleman,  by  misfortune  or  bad  manage- 
ment, had  become  deprived  of  that  affluence, 
which  once  gilded  the  coronet  of  his  ancestral 
house;    the    unfortunate    merchant,    by    unwise 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  27 

speculation,  improper  investments,  want  of  suc- 
cess, or  some  other  mismanagement  in  his  com- 
mercial affairs,  brought  himself  and  family  to  tlie 
verge  of  ruin ;  the  industrious  artisan  coukl 
scarcely  maintain  a  large  and  increasing  family 
on  the  small  pittance  which  was  his  daily  support, 
forbidding  his  industry  ever  to  reach  beyond  tliat 
which  was  necessarily  consumed  in  the  mainte- 
nance of  his  esteemed  wife  and  beloved  children  ; 
whilst  the  tenant  upon  a  lordly  estate  was  so  over- 
burdened with  tithes  and  gatherings,  that  he 
groaned  over  the  profitless  labor  which  he  daily 
performed. 

In  addition  to  these  classes,  many  young  and 
unmarried  men  and  women,  who  could  see  noth- 
ing before  them  but  pre-occupied  situations,  closed 
avenues  of  industry;  and  servants,  already  too  nu- 
merous, awaiting  the  rich  man's  bidding,  felt  but 
too  keenly  that  the  Old  World  had  little  employ- 
ment to  ofler,  and  less  bread  to  spare. 

Thus  necessity,  as  well  as  inclination,  induced 
these  worthy  members  of  society  to  seek  a  fortune 
in  America,  or  at  least  to  improve  their  pecuniar}^ 
condition,  which  was  accomplished  by  engaging 
in  remunerative  agriculture,  trading  with  the 
aborigines  of  the  forests,  or  in  the  pursuit  of  such 
commercial  enterprises  as  invited  the  settlers  to 
the  enjoyment  of  prospective  wealth,  luxury,  and 
influence.  Capital  was  necessary,  connected  with 
the  ordinary  commercial  judgment  and  prudence, 
to  build  up  a  fortune  for  the  enterprising  merchant 
in  the  Old  World,  but  in  America,  industry  and 


28  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

economy  accomplished  astonisliiiig  results ;  oppor- 
tuiiitj  was  wanting  to  many  an  anxious  aspirant 
in  the  Fatherland  in  all  the  various  departments 
of  industiy,  but  in  the  ^ew  World,  unoccupied 
situations  presented  themselves  every  day  to  all 
classes  of  honest  and  useful  men,  whilst  the  want 
of  labor  in  the  wilds  of  America  was  constantly 
felt.  Lands,  farms,  and  plantations  were  freely 
offered  to  every  settler  for  a  small  amount  of  pur- 
chase-money, or  for  an  annual  quit-rent  of  a  trifling 
character. 

What  an  alluring  prospect  presented  itself  in 
this  country  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  Europe,  a 
country  crowded  for  many  centuries  to  its  utmost 
capacity !  What  an  outlet  to  the  inhabitants 
thereof,  groaning  under  the  stringent  civil  laws 
necessary  for  such  a  superabundant  population, 
which  was  at  times  somewhat  reduced  by  the 
horrors  of  civil  war !  They  came,  like  so  many 
swarms  of  bees  from  their  native  hives,  to  seek 
subsistence  and  wealth  in  America,  where  good 
prospects  and  fine  opportunities  awaited  them. 

A  large  number  of  emigrants  to  this  country 
were  possessed  of  a  romantic  spirit,  desiring  to 
roam  free  and  unrestrained  through  the  primeval 
forests  in  search  of  adventure;  their  highest  am- 
bition was  to  hunt  the  wild  deer,  chase  the  fox 
and  the  buffalo,  trap  the  beaver  and  the  otter,  or 
encounter  other  but  more  dangerous  animals 
without  the  restraints  of  law  or  privilege  of  fa- 
voritism, which  forbade  their  entering  into  Euro- 
pean forests  with  the  rifle,  the  huntsman's  dog, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  29 

and  the  horn  ;  at  that  time  even  the  Atlantic  slope 
of  our  country  afforded  them  ample  opportunities 
and  advantages  to  follow  the  bent  of  their  inclina- 
tions; their  wonderful  narratives  composed  many 
of  the  winter-evening  tales  that  were  then  pub- 
lished for  the  amusement  and  instruction  of  many 
a  European  family. 

Another,  and  a  very  useful  and  valuable,  class 
of  colonists  were  the  redemptioners,  who  came  to 
America  to  escape  the  poverty  and  starvation  that 
stared  them  in  the  face  in  their  native  country; 
bread  for  themselves,  their  wives,  and  their  little 
ones,  was  all  they  asked  and  expected  from  the 
fruitful  soil  of  their  adopted  country;  too  poor  to 
pay  their  passage-money  across  the  ocean,  the 
father,  and  sometimes  the  mother  also,  were  sold 
by  the  captain  of  the  ship,  as  soon  as  the  vessel 
arrived  in  port,  and  thus  several  years'  labor  of 
these  poor  emigrants  were  required  to  pay  the  ex- 
pense of  their  passage  to  America.  These  settlers 
had  a  hard  life  of  it;  however,  Avitli  strict  economy 
and  by  honest  industry  they  became  qualified  for 
future  independence,  which  they  had  learned  to 
appreciate  well  by  a  previous  state  of  servitude. 
Others  of  the  same  class  were  aided  by  European 
philanthropists  to  settle  themselves  in  the  various 
colonies  in  America,  having  a  debt  of  gratitude 
ever  resting  upon  them  and  their  children,  for  the 
kindness  extended  to  them  by  their  benefactors  iu 
the  Fatherland. 

Political  refugees  also  found  an  asylum  and  a 
home  in  this  country;  some  of  these  came  from 


30  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Scotland,  who  had  espoused  tlie  cause  of  the  Pre- 
tender, Charles  Edward,  and  were  persecuted  by 
the  reigning  house  of  Hanover  in  Great  Britain  ; 
others  came  from  Ireland,  after  the  rebellion;  and 
some  again  emigrated  from  other  countries  for  the 
same  reasons  ;  many  came  from  all  parts  of  Ger- 
many, in  order  to  escape  the  demands  of  their 
countr}'  upon  them  for  military  service  ;  whilst  not 
a  few  from  all  lands  came  to  settle  in  America, 
having  been  fugitives  from  justice,  and  "left  their 
country  for  their  country's  good." 

Thus  these  early  settlers  came  from  every  na- 
tion in  Europe;  they  spoke  every  language  of  that 
country;  they  were  possessed  of  every  shade  of 
idea;  they  differed  in  their  manners,  customs,  and 
habits.  In  this  wa}'  was  America  peopled;  and 
these  were  the  parents  of  that  hardy  and  indomi- 
table race  which  eventually  broke  the  rule  and 
power  of  the  English  crown  in  the  colonies  of 
America,  during  the  bloody  period  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary^ War. 

Section  ^.   TJie  religions  persecutions  in  Europe,  as 
another  effective  cause  of  emigration  to  America. 

What  would  finally  have  become  of  America 
with  its  heterogeneous  mass  of  inhabitants,  with- 
out the  intermixture  of  a  people  possessed  of  an 
earnest  and  active  Christianity,  as  "the  salt  of  the 
earth,"  or  "the  leaven  for  the  whole  lump,"  is  a 
fruitful  subject  for  the  pen  of  the  speculative  phi- 
losopher; happily,  however,  Providence  furnished 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  31 

this  precious  leaven  at  the  commencement  of  the 
colonization  of  America,  by  employing  the  fires 
of  bloody  persecutions  in  various  parts  of  the  Old 
World,  and  thus  again  was  "  the  wrath  of  man 
made  to  praise  God,"  whilst  "  the  remainder  of 
wrath  He  did  restrain."  We  are  familiar  with 
the  history  of  the  Puritans  of  England,  who  sought 
and  found  a  home  on  the  barren  rocks  and  shores 
of  Plymouth,  Massachusetts;  but  the  story  of  the 
persecuted  Huguenots  of  France,  who  settled 
themselves  in  the  Carolinas;  of  the  E'on-conform- 
ists  of  Scotland  ;  of  the  German  Palatines  (Pfalzer) 
from  the  Rhine;  of  the  Salzburgers  from  the  Al- 
pine districts  of  Austria,  is  as  yet  but  imperfectly 
known,  and  but  partially  understood. 

It  was  religious  persecution  which  caused  a  very 
large  number  of  European  inhabitants  to  emigrate, 
and  to  seek  an  asylum  in  America,  and,  in  so  doing, 
they  sought  not  wealth  nor  fortune,  but  simply, 
"freedom  to  worship  God;"  here  they  found  the 
asylum  they  sought;  no  hand  of  political  or  eccle- 
siastical power  has  ever  materially  disturbed  the 
votaries  of  any  religious  tenet  or  worship  in  the 
enjoyment  of  this  inalienable  right.  These  noble 
colonists  erected  many  a  Plymouth  monument  of 
religious  liberty  on  our  Southern  shores,  and  under 
circumstances  much  more  interesting  than  those 
which  attended  the  crossing  of  the  noted  Mayflower 
from  Old  to  New  England. 

A  cloud  of  persecution  overshadowed  the  Prot- 
estant Christian  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  more 
fierce  and  unrelenting  than  that  which  ever  op- 


32  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

pressed  the  Puritans  in  their  native  countrj^  The 
Church  of  Rome,  which  had  long  been  schooled 
in  the  doctrine  of  "death  to  heretics,"  which  had 
led  a  John  Huss  and  a  Jerome  of  Prague  to  a 
martyr's  death,  which  had  endeavored  to  exter- 
minate with  fire  and  sword  the  pious  Piedmontese 
in  their  peaceful  valleys  and  mountain  fastnesses 
of  Italy,  which  had  inaugurated  the  horrors  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  night,  continued  its  savage  orgies 
against  the  devoted  Huguenots  of  France,  by  the 
revocation  of  the  edict  of  Nantes  in  1685,  when 
France  lost  750,000  of  its  most  useful  and  indus- 
trious citizens,  many  of  whom  located  themselves 
permanently  in  America. 

The  name  "Hus-uenot"  was  a  term  of  derision 
applied  by  the  Romish  Church  to  those  Protestant 
Christians  who  had  early  embraced  the  doctrines 
of  the  Reformation,  and  is  said  to  have  originated 
from  a  certain  locality  near  the  city  of  Tours, 
where  the  first  French  Protestants  usually  assem- 
bled themselves  for  public  worship. 

Under  the  reign  of  Henry  H,  of  France,  the 
Huguenots  increased  rapidly,  which  so  alarmed 
the  Romanists,  that  they  organized  themselves  into 
a  party  with  the  intention  of  exterminating  all 
traces  of  Protestantism  in  the  realm;  yet  in  this 
they  were  not  successful.  Thus  matters  were  con- 
tinued during  the  short  reign  of  Francis  H,  a 
young  and  imbecile  prince;  when  at  last  his  bro- 
ther, Charles  IX,  surnamed  the  Blood}^,  ascended 
the  throne.  A  civil  war  now  broke  out  between 
the   Romanists    and   Protestants,   in    which   the 


IN  NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  33 

former  were  in  the  main  successful.  Charles  IX, 
instigated  by  his  wicked  mother,  Catharine  de' 
Medicis,  introduced  the  awful  horrors  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's night,  August  24th,  1572,  when  Ad- 
miral Coligni  and  thousands  of  his  fellow-Protest- 
ants met  with  a  treacherous  and  bloody  death. 
"The  massacre  was  continued  in  the  city  and 
throughout  the  kingdom  for  a  week,  and  it  is  com- 
puted that  from  eighty  to  one  hundred  thousand 
were  slain  in  France.  The  annals  of  the  world 
are  filled  with  narratives  of  crime  and  woe,  but 
the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  stands,  perhaps, 
without  a  parallel." 

During  the  reign  of  Henry  IV,  the  Protestants 
were  treated  with  marked  favor,  and  in  1598  he 
proclaimed  an  edict  at  the  city  of  E'antes,  granting 
to  the  Protestants  the  right  of  religious  liberty. 
This  celebrated  Edict  of  I^antes  continued  in  force 
for  eighty-seven  years,  until  the  reign  of  Louis 
XIY,  when,  in  1685,  it  was  revoked,  and  now 
again  were  the  tires  of  persecution  lighted  anew, 
and  the  Huguenots,  feeling  themselves  no  longer 
secure  in  their  own  native  land,  and  dreading  a 
repetition  of  the  horrors  of  former  years,  resolved 
to  leave  a  country  over  which  such  a  hostile  gov- 
ernment had  unlimited  sway.  They  fled  to  Swit- 
zerland, Germany,  Holland,  England,  and  Amer- 
ica, and  thus  was  France,  depopulated  of  thou- 
sands of  her  most  useful,  industrious,  and  wealthy 
citizens,  who  carried  with  them  not  only  their 
religion,  but  likewise  some  of  the  finer  and  most 
useful  arts  of  France.    In  America  the  Huguenots 


34  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

located  themselves  principally  in  the  provinces  of 
Xortli  and  South  Carolina,  where  we  meet  with 
their  honored  descendants  at  the  present  day. 

The  ]N"on-conformists  or  Dissenters  were  those 
Calvinistic  Christians  in  Scotland,  who  were  un- 
willins:  to  be  connected  with  the  established  Chnrch 
of  England,  and  were  persecuted  on  account  of 
their  religious  ftiith.  Some  of  these  lied  directly  to 
America,  others  at  first  located  themselves  in  the 
northern  part  of  Ireland,  and  from  thence  they  and 
their  descendants  removed  to  this  country,  hence 
they  are  called  Scotch-Irish.  They  came  flocking 
in  large  numbers  to  America,  and  their  descend- 
ants may  be  traced  in  the  bosom  of  the  various 
branches  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  this 
country. 

We  must  now  turn  our  attention  to  our  German 
forefathers.  Soon  after  the  revocation  of  the 
Edict  of  l^antes,  Louis  XIY,  king  of  France,  not 
content  with  persecuting  his  own  subjects,  spread 
desolation  into  Germanj^  The  country  named 
Alsace,  formerly  a  French  province,  located  along 
the  banks  of  the  beautiful  Rhine;  the  Palatinate, 
a  country  no  longer  known  in  the  geography  of 
Europe,  but  known  well  in  its  history,  these  were 
the  fields  of  bloody  carnage  for  the  grand  and 
cruel  Louis,  who  threatened  the  utter  extermina- 
tion not  only  of  the  strong  men,  who  might  oppose 
him  in  battle,  but  of  the  aged  fiithers,  as  well  as  of 
the  helpless  females  and  innocent  children,  whose 
only  crime  was,  in  his  view,  the  sin  of  Protestant- 
ism.    The  persecution  of  the  German  Palatines 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  35 

(Pfalzer)  was  occasioned  b}^  the  war  of  the  Spanish 
Succession,  to  which  brief  alkision  is  made  in  Dr. 
Hazelios'  American  Lutheran  Church,  page  23, 
an  account  of  which  shall  be  given  in  the  next 
section  of  this  history. 

Another  valuable  accession  of  German  settlers, 
who  were  driven  to  this  countrj^  by  the  cruelties 
of  religious  intolerance,  were  the  pious  Salzburgers 
from  the  regions  of  the  i^oric  Alps,  in  Upper 
Austria,  and  who  were  persecuted  on  account  of 
their  religion  by  Leopold,  the  Roman  Catholic 
Archbishop  of  Salzburg. 

Of  these  German  colonists,  who  settled  them- 
selves in  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  twenty-six  miles 
northwest  of  Savannah,  Bancroft,  the  historian, 
writes  thus:  "They  were  indeed  a  noble  army  of 
martyrs  going  forth  in  the  strength  of  God,  and 
triumphing  in  the  faith  of  the  Gospel  under  the 
severest  hardships  and  the  most  rigorous  persecu- 
tions. They  were  marshalled  under  no  banners 
save  that  of  the  cross,  and  were  preceded  by  no 
leaders  save  their  spiritual  teachers  and  the  great 
Captain  of  their  salvation."  Sympathy  had  been 
so  greatl}^  enlisted  in  their  behalf  throughout  all 
Protestant  Europe,  that  their  journey  from  the  in- 
terior of  Austria  to  the  seaboard  was  like  a  con- 
stant ovation  ;  the  cities  and  towns,  through  which 
they  passed,  vied  with  each  other  to  do  them  honor 
and  bid  them  God-speed. 

They  travelled  on  foot,  passing  through  Augs- 
burg and  Halle,  until  they  reached  Frankfort-on- 
the-Main,  where  they  embarked  in  a  vessel,  and 


36  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

were  soon  floating  on  the  bosom  of  the  beautiful 
Rhine.  "And  as  they  passed,"  says  Bancroft, 
"between  the  castled  crags,  the  vineyards,  and 
the  white-walled  towns  that  adorn  its  banks,  their 
conversation,  amid  hymns  and  psalms,  is  of  justi- 
fication and  sanctitication." 

It  is  not  necessary  to  give  an  extended  history 
of  the  Salzburgers,  inasmuch  as  they  were  not  set- 
tlers of  ITorth  and  South  Carolina,  though  near 
neighbors  to  their  brethren  in  those  two  provinces, 
and  exerting  great  influence  over  them.  However, 
should  the  reader  desire  to  know  more  of  their 
history,  he  is  referred  to  "Strobel's  History  of  the 
Salzburgers,"  or  to  "Urlsperger's  ivTachrichten  der 
ersten  l!^iederlassung  der  Salzburger  Emigranten  in 
Georgien,"  and  "Das  Americanische  Ackerwerk 
Gottes,"  in  five  large  quarto  volumes  of  some  1200 
pages  each. 

It  will  not  be  uninteresting  to  state,  that  though 
these  Salzburg  emigrants  were  Germans  at  the 
time  of  their  departure  from  Austria,  they  are, 
nevertheless,  the  descendants  of  those  noble  Yal- 
lenses  of  Piedmont,  Italy,  who  had  fled  from  the 
persecutions  of  the  Dukes  of  Savoy,  following  the 
mountain  crags  of  the  Alps  until  they  arrived  at 
a  place  of  comparative  safety  in  Austria,  where 
for  awhile  they  could  worship  their  God  unmo- 
lested by  Papal  intolerance.  There  they  soon  em- 
braced the  Lutheran  faith,  and  educated  their 
cliildren  in  the  pure  doctrines  and  principles  of 
the  Peformation  ;  and  it  is  only  to  be  regretted 
that  such  an  able  historian  as  Bancroft  should, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  37 

with  "Urlsperger's  l^achrichten"  before  bim,  al- 
tbonerb  written  in  tbe  German  lano-uao^e,  make  all 
tbese  Salzburgers  Moravians,  wbicb  error  is,  of 
course,  copied  by  nearly  all  the  minor  historians 
who  have  written  text-books  for  our  common 
schools.  Even  Moravians  smile  at  this  Bancroftian 
error  in  history  and  geography,  as  no  Moravians 
had  ever  a  habitation  in  that  portion  of  Austria 
where  once  the  Salzburgers  resided. 

Section  3.   The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession. 

War  is  always  the  occasion  of  great  upheavals 
in  society;  the  anxiety,  the  feeling  of  insecurity, 
the  ravages  of  a  brutal  soldiery  passing  through 
the  country  of  a  people  whom  they  regard  as  their 
enemies,  has  the  effect  of  dislodging  many  a  peace- 
ful citizen  from  his  native  home.  In  addition  to 
that,  the  persecutions  which  generally  follow  the 
unsuccessful  party  after  the  conflict  is  over,  makes 
many  a  one  a  fugitive  from  the  land  he  once  loved, 
to  seek  an  asylum  in  some  undisturbed  country, 
where  he  may  enjoy  both  the  fruits  of  his  labor 
and  his  religion  unmolested. 

Among  the  many  wars  which  afflicted  Europe 
during  the  period  of  American  colonization,  the 
War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  stands  prominent 
in  history,  as  being  the  chief  instrument  in  send- 
ing numerous  settlers  to  the  English  colonies  on 
this  side  of  the  Atlantic ;  and,  inasmuch  as  the 
English  government  was  also  drawn  into  the  vortex 
of  this  strife,  the  British  queen,  Anne,  made  large 


38  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

provision  for  the  welfare  of  those  Germans  who 
were  made  unfortunate  and  homeless  exiles  from 
their  native  land  by  the  effects  of  this  useless  war. 
Extensive  grants  of  land  were  made  for  the  bene- 
fit of  these  German  Palatines  in  I^ew  York,  isTorth 
and  South  Carolina,  by  the  benevolent  Queen  Anne, 
of  which  more  shall  be  said  in  this  history  at  the 
proper  place. 

Charles  II,  king  of  Spain,  departed  this  life 
I^ovember  1st,  1700,  without  having  been  blessed 
with  any  heir  in  his  own  immediate  family  as  a 
successor  to  his  throne.  He  was  the  last  scion  of 
that  branch  of  the  Hapsburg  family  which  bore 
the  rule  in  Spain  for  nearly  two  hundred  years. 
In  Austria  the  house  of  Hapsburg  has  been  the 
occupant  of  the  throne  from  A.D.  1273  to  the 
present  daj',  a  period  of  about  six  hundred  years; 
and  on  account  of  its  distant  relationship  with  the 
ruling  famil}^  of  Spain,  one  of  the  sons  of  Leopold 
I,  king  of  Austria,  was  the  natural  successor  to 
the  vacant  throne. 

This  matter  would  have  been  thus  adjudged  by 
all  Europe  without  any  difficulty,  had  not  Louis 
XIV,  king  of  France,  by  intrigue  and  persuasion, 
induced  Charles,  shortly  before  his  decease,  to  make 
a  will,  in  which  he  nominated  Philip,  a  grandson 
of  Louis,  to  be  his  successor  to  the  Spanish  throne. 
This  involved  the  question  of  the  Spanish  succes- 
sion in  a  difficulty,  which  agitated  all  Europe  at 
the  commencement  of  the  eighteenth  century,  as 
it  became  a  question  of  state  policy  which  threat- 
ened to  disarrange  the  system  of  equilibrium  of 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  39 

power  in  Europe.  Should  the  Bourbon  family 
become  possessed  of  the  thrones  of  France  and 
Spain,  a  power  would  then  have  been  established 
which  could  and  would  overawe  all  the  kinsfdoms 
and  minor  states  of  Europe,  to  the  destruction  ot 
their  independence  and,  perhaps,  of  their  religion. 
Hence  it  was  that  all  the  powers  of  Europe  became 
interested  in  the  proper  settlement  of  this  vexa- 
tious affair  of  state. 

The  vacant  throne  of  Spain  presented  a  most 
tempting  object  of  desire  to  the  two  claimants,  for 
at  that  time  Spain  was  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
zenith  of  her  wealth  and  glory ;  her  rule  extended 
over  the  Netherlands,  Naples,  Sicily,  Milan,  and 
the  larger  portion  of  America — a  handsome  legacy 
indeed,  of  wealth,  power,  and  regal  glory  for  the 
fortunate  successor  of  the  deceased  Charles.  What 
a  blessing  it  would  have  been  for  Europe  for  a 
court  of  law  to  have  decided  this  matter,  as  is  done 
in  all  other  cases  of  disputed  inheritance;  or,  if 
resort  must  have  been  had  to  a  conflict  of  arms, 
the  persons  immediately  interested  to  have  fought 
it  out  among  themselves,  without  dragging  their 
unfortunate  subjects  and  neighbors  into  the  bloody 
strife. 

In  this  manner  originated  this  dreadful  conflict, 
known  in  history  as  the  "  War  of  the  Spanish  Suc- 
cession," which  raged  so  fiercely  in  Europe  for  a 
period  of  thirteen  years. 

Leopold  I,  Emperor  of  Austria,  had  two  sons, 
Joseph  I,  heir-apparent  to  his  father's  throne,  and 
Archduke  Charles,  whom  his  father  expected  to 


40  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

wear  the  crown  of  Spain,  as  the  legitimate  suc- 
cessor of  his  kinsman,  Charles  11.  The  King  of 
France,  Louis  XIY,  had  no  son  living,  but  his  two 
grandsons  became  the  object  of  his  care  and  solici- 
tude. Louis,  the  Dauphin,  afterwards  Louis  XY, 
was  heir-apparent  to  the  throne  of  France,  and 
PhiHp,  Duke  of  Anjou,  afterwards  Philip  V  of 
Spain,  was  the  person  named  in  Charles's  will  as 
his  successor. 

The  French  king  enlisted  France,  Spain,  and 
the  Electorates  of  Bavaria  and  Cologne  on  his 
side ;  whilst  the  Emperor  of  Austria  induced  the 
German  States,  the  l^etherlands,  and  England  to 
declare  themselves  in  favor  of  the  house  of  Haps- 
burg.  Denmark  permitted  herself  to  be  subsidized 
by  England,  and  arrayed  herself  also  on  the  side 
of  the  allies  against  France.  The  countries,  which 
felt  the  direful  effects  of  the  war  most  severely, 
were  Italy,  Spain,  France,  Germany,  and  the 
^Netherlands,  as  all  of  these  countries  became  the 
theatre  for  the  bloody  strife. 

The  war  had  lasted  several  years,  when  Leopold, 
Emperor  of  Austria,  died,  A.D.  1705,  and  his 
eldest  son,  Joseph  I,  ascended  the  imperial  throne 
as  his  successor,  but  without  producing  any  change 
in  the  progress  of  the  war,  which  was  waged  on 
both  sides  as  fiercely  as  ever,  and  in  which  the  allied 
Austrian  powers  were  in  the  main  successful,  and 
Louis  XIV  would  soon  have  been  so  humbled  as 
to  withdraw  his  claim  to  the  Spanish  throne ;  how- 
ever, the  new  Emperor  of  Austria,  Joseph  I,  died 
in  the  year  1711 ,  leaving  no  issue,  when  his  brother, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  41 

the  Archduke  Charles,  succeeded  to  the  vacant 
throne.  This  event  so  material!}^  affected  the 
question  in  dispute,  that  it  promised  a  speedy  re- 
turn of  peace. 

The  derangement  of  the  State  system  of  Europe 
of  equilibrium  of  power  was  now  more  to  be 
dreaded  in  the  Hapsburg  family,  by  uniting  the 
crowns  of  Austria  and  Spain,  as  in  the  Bourbon 
family  reigning  in  France  ;  consequently,  England 
and  some  of  the  other  European  States  were  pre- 
pared for  terms  of  settlement;  and  Charles  of  Aus- 
tria could  have  been  no  longer  so  anxious  for  the 
throne  of  Spain,  since  be  had  come  into  possession 
of  the  crowns  of  Austria,  Hungary,  and  Bohemia. 

A  change  of  administration  in  England  inter- 
rupted for  a  season  the  settlement  of  the  difficulty; 
however,  all  matters  were  finally  adjusted  at  the 
Congress  of  Utrecht  and  Rastadt,  A.D.  1713  and 
1714,  when  it  was  agreed  that  Philip  Y,  Duke  of 
Anjou,  and  grandson  of  Louis  XIV,  should  suc- 
ceed to  the  Spanish  throne,  with  the  proviso  that 
France  and  Spain  shall  be,  and  forever  remain, 
separate  kingdoms;  that  the  crowns  of  these  two 
kingdoms  shall  never  descend  upon  one  head,  in 
order  that  the  equilibrium  of  State  power  in  Eu- 
rope should  in  nowise  be  disturbed;  and  thus  has 
the  Bourbon  family,  until  recently,  occupied  the 
throne  of  Spain,  except  for  the  short  time  when 
ITapoleon  I  disturbed  the  peace  of  all  Europe  at 
the  commencement  of  the  present  century. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  give  an  account  of  the 
battles  that  were  fought  during  this  war,  or  to 

4 


42  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

name  the  generals  who  became  conspicuous  in  the 
strife,  or  to  enumerate  the  principles,  rights,  privi- 
leo-es,  towns,  and  fortresses  which  each  nation  se- 
cured  or  lost  at  the  peace  of  Utrecht  and  Eastadt; 
our  purposes  will  be  served  by  turning  our  atten- 
tion to  Germany,  and  notice  the  dire  effects  of  this 
cruel  war  upon  its  peaceful  inhabitants. 

In  order  to  gain  his  end,  and  the  sooner  to  se- 
cure his  coveted  prize,  Louis  XIV  carried  his  war 
into  all  Germany,  except  Bavaria  and  Cologne, 
which  countries  belonged  to  his  allies;  besides, 
being  a  bigoted  Romanist,  and  the  inhabitants  of 
Germany  being  nearly  all  Protestants,  he  had  a 
twofold  motive  in  carrying  fire  and  sword,  desola- 
tion and  ruin,  wherever  he  sent  his  army  among 
our  German  forefathers,  who  were  residing  so 
peacefully  and  prosperously  in  those  countries 
bordering  on  the  beautiful  Rhine,  insomuch  that 
a  proverb  arose  among  them,  "We  dread  the 
French,  as  well  as  the  Turks,  as  enemies  of  our 
holy  religion." 

The  peaceful  inhabitants  of  the  Palatinate,  plun- 
dered of  all  their  earthly  possessions,  were  driven 
in  midwinter  as  exiles  from  their  native  land  to 
seek  an  asylum  in  some  safe  and  friendly  country. 
They  beheld  their  comfortable  cottages  and  once 
amply-filled  barns  and  storehouses  smouldering  in 
the  flames  behind  them,  whilst  they  and  their 
helpless  wives  and  children,  ruined  in  worldly 
prosperity,  naked,  feeble,  and  in  a  starving  condi- 
tion, were  wending  their  weary  way  over  vast 
fields  of  snow  and  ice,  leaving  their  bloody  foot- 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAKOLINA.  43 

prints  ill  the  frozen  snow,  seeking  shelter  and 
finding  none.  ]N"umbers  perished  bj  the  way, 
Others  dragged  along  their  feeble  bodies  until  at 
last  they  found  safety  in  the  ^Netherlands,  and 
from  thence  they  journeyed  into  England.  This 
is  no  overdrawn  picture.  Says  a  distinguished 
writer:*  "The  ravages  of  Louis  XIV  in  the  beau- 
tiful valleys  of  the  Rhine,  were  more  fierce  and 
cruel  than  even  Mahometans  could  have  had  the 
heart  to  perpetrate.  Private  dv/ellings  were  razed 
to  the  ground,  fields  laid  waste,  cities  burnt, 
churches  demolished,  and  the  fruits  of  industry 
wantonly  and  ruthlessly  destroyed.  But  three 
days  of  grace  were  allowed  to  the  wretched  in- 
habitants to  flee  their  countrj^,  and  in  a  short  time, 
the  historian  tells  us,  '  the  roads  w^ere  blackened 
by  innumerable  multitudes  of  men,  women,  and 
children,  flying  from  their  homes.  Many  died  of 
cold  and  hunger;  but  enough  survived  to  fill  the 
streets  of  all  the  cities  of  Europe  with  lean  and 
squalid  beggars,  who  had  once  been  thriving 
farmers  and  shopkeepers.' '' 

The  cruel-hearted  Louis  exhibited  no  mercy  to 
his  own  French-Protestant  subjects  at  the  revoca- 
tion of  the  Edict  of  ITantes,  but  persecuted  them 
with  fire  and  sword,  and  drove  them  from  his 
realm,  though  their  loss  would  be  greatly  felt  in 
France;  would  he  then  be  less  lenient  to  those 
foreigners  whom  he  regarded  both  as  his  political 
enemies  as  well  as  his  spiritual  foes,  inasmuch  as 

^  Kev.  Dr.  Thornwell. 


44  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

they  were  believers  iu  the  principles  of  the  Refor- 
mation ?  Thus  were  these  inhabitants  of  the 
Palatinate  continually  harassed  by  the  French 
army,  until  they  were  safely  landed  in  England. 
The  good  Queen  Anne  had  invited  them  to  her 
realm,  and  thither  they  flocked  by  thousands, 
where  they  were  kindly  treated  and  hospitably 
entertained. 

•  It  occurred  to  the  benevolent  Queen,  that  she 
coukl  better  provide  for  these  poor  Palatines  by 
inducing  them  to  become  settlers  in  her  American 
colonies,  where  all  classes  of  useful  citizens  were 
greatly  needed.  Accordingly,  some  were  settled 
in  the  Province  of  J^ew  York ;  others  again  were 
brought  over  by  De  Graffenreid  and  Mitchell  to 
ISTewberne,  ]N"orth  Carolina;  and  some  found  a 
home  in  various  portions  of  the  colony  of  South 
Carolina,  principally  in  Charleston  and  along  the 
banks  of  the  Congaree,  Saluda,  and  Broad  Rivers; 
whilst  others  can  be  traced  to  have  settled  in 
Orangeburg  District,  and  some  along  the  Savan- 
nah River,  occupying  some  of  the  most  fertile 
valleys  of  that  Province. 

Thus  they  became  at  length  happily,  and,  to  all 
appearances,  safely  located.  Every  possible  ar- 
rangement was  made  by  the  Queen  to  provide  not 
only  comfortable  homes  for  these  unfortunate 
refugees,  but  likewise  extensive  grants  of  land  for 
churches,  pastorates,  glebes,  and  schools  for  the 
education  of  their  children. 

When  these  persecuted  German  Protestants 
journeyed  to  America,  they  brought  with  them 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  45 

their  Bibles,  hymn-books,  catechisms,  and  other 
religious  books  for  edification  and  instruction; 
and,  what  was  still  better,  they  brought  with  them 
the  pearl  of  great  price,  their  religion,  their  piety, 
and  their  habits  of  devotion,  and  thus  thej^  be- 
came, in  a  great  measure,  the  salt  of  the  earth  to 
all  around  them  where  they  were  located. 

Whilst  it  is  true  that  the  War  of  the  Spanish 
Succession  left  its  dire  effects  upon  the  face  of  the 
lovely  countries  along  the  Rhine,  and  that  the 
peaceful  inhabitants,  who  were  innocent  in  bring- 
ing it  about,  were  nevertheless  the  principal  suf- 
ferers, whilst  wicked  and  designing  men  were  the 
agents  of  this  dreadful  scourge;  yet  God,  for  wise 
purposes,  permitted  them  to  afflict  and  humble  his 
people;  America  stood  in  need  of  pious,  industri- 
ous, and  useful  settlers,  who  might  otherwise 
never  have  departed  from  their  comfortable  and 
happy  homes  in  the  Fatherland,  but  who  now  came 
flocking  to  the  New  World  in  great  numbers,  to 
build  up  Christ's  kingdom  in  a  rising  and  future 
prosperous  country.  Time,  progress,  and  indus- 
try— the  powerful  healers  of  all  national  troubles — 
would  eventually  rectify  the  devastations,  and  re- 
build the  ruins  which  war  had  made  in  the  Palat- 
inate, whilst  America  became  blessed  in  her  policy 
of  being  the  asylum  for  the  oppressed  of  all  na- 
tions. 

It  is,  however,  sad  to  reflect  that  these  German 
refugees  did  not  improve  the  advantages  oflered 
and  granted  them  for  churches  and  schools  by 
the  benevolent  Queen  of  England ;  their  glebes, 


46  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

pastorates,  and  school-tracts  were  suffered  to  re- 
main unoccupied  by  themselves  and  their  de- 
scendants, until  these  grants  and  privileges  were 
forgotten,  and  the  lands  otherwise  disposed  of. 
A  large  body  of  land,  now  forming  a  county  in 
South  Carolina,  and  yet  remembered  by  the  name 
of  "  the  Saxe-Gotha  tract,"  situated  along  the 
banks  of  the  Congaree  River,  which  was  once 
allotted  by  Queen  Anne  for  this  purpose,  was 
finally  lost  to  the  Church,  although  the  Germans 
made  settlements  in  that  vicinity  at  a  later  date. 
What  an  immense  amount  of  wealth  might  have 
been  preserved  to  the  Lutheran  Church,  to  ad- 
vance religion  and  education  among  the  descend- 
ants of  these  Palatines  and  otlier  German  settlers 
to  their  latest  generation,  in  the  different  colonies 
of  America,  where  these  grants  were  located. 

Section  4.  The  Mission  Societies  established  in  JEurope 
for  the  benefit  of.  the  early  settlers  in  America. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  various  colonists 
of  America  were  soon  forgotten  by  their  friends 
and  relatives  in  the  old  country,  or  were  neglected 
by  their  former  spiritual  shepherds.  We  send 
missionaries,  at  the  present  time,  to  nations  still 
benighted  with  heathenism,  and  not  at  all  con- 
nected with  us  by  the  strong  ties  of  consanguinity; 
how  much  more  would  the  European  Christians 
feel  interested  in  the  progress  of  evangelization 
in  this  Western  world,  where  their  own  kindred 
resided,  who  were  of  the  same  household  of  faith, 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  47 

and  from  whom  tbey  occasionally  received  infor- 
mation by  letters,  beseeching  them  to  send  them 
ministers  of  the  gospel  to  break  the  bread  of 
eternal  life  to  them. 

Some  of  the  colonists,  like  the  Salzburgers,  took 
their  pastors  with  them  to  America;  others  were 
not  so  fortunate;  and  all  had  need  of  more  min- 
isters, in  order  that  they  might  regularly  enjoy 
the  administration  of  all  the  means  of  grace.  Con- 
sequently, various  mission  societies  were  formed 
in  Europe  among  the  Episcopalians,  the  Lutherans, 
the  Moravians,  and,  perhaps,  some  other  denom- 
inations, to  meet  this  want.  A  society  of  this  kind 
seems  to  have  been  lirst  organized  in  England,  called 
"  The  Society  for  Promoting  the  Knowledge  of 
Christ  in  Foreign  Parts,"  with  wdiich  the  Lutheran 
Church  on  the  Continent  must  have  been  in  some 
way  connected,  having  her  directors  in  that  institu- 
tion, such  as,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Ziegenhagen,  Lutheran 
chaplain  at  the  Court  of  St.  James,  London ;  Rev. 
Dr.  Urlsperger,  pastor  of  St.  AnnaLutheran  Church 
of  Augsburg;  Rev.  Dr.  Francke,  son  of  the  founder 
of  the  Orphan  House  at  Halle;  this  missionary  in- 
stitution is  also  noticed  in  many  historical  works 
under  its  Latin  title,  ''  Societas  promovenda  cog- 
nitione  Christi,"  and  was  exceedingly  effective  in 
doing  great  good  in  this  country ;  under  its  care 
the  mission  in  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  was  placed;  it 
not  only  supported  their  pastors,  but  built  their 
churches  and  endowed  them  by  various  investments. 

These  Ebenezer  pastors  were  in  duty  bound  to 
report  minutely,  extensively,  and  frequently  to  the 


48  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

missionary  hoard  in  Europe,  or  Fathers  (as  they 
were  then  called);  which  reports  were  published 
by  Dr.  Urlsperger,  of  Augsburg,  for  the  purpose 
of  keeping  up  the  interest  in  Germany  in  behalf 
of  this  mission  in  Georgia;  they  are  still  extant, 
and  known  by  the  name  of  ''  The  Urlsperger 
^N^achrichten." 

The  University  of  Halle  organized  a  separate 
mission  society,  which  was  altogether  under  Lu- 
theran management.  It  was  this  society  that  sent 
Rev.  H.  M.  Muhlenberg,  D.D.,  and  other  Lutheran 
ministers  to  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania,  who 
labored  there  among  the  German  settlers.  Their 
missionary  reports  were  sent  to  the  society  in 
Halle,  where  they  were  likewise  published,  and 
are  now  known  by  the  double  name  of  "  Die  Hal- 
lische  IS'achrichten,"  or  "Die  Pennsylvanische 
Nachrichten,"  many  copies  of  which  are  still  pre- 
served in  the  libraries  of  several  Lutheran  colleges 
in  the  United  States,  to  which  they  were  donated 
by  a  great-grandson  of  the  Halle  Society's  first  mis- 
sionary, H.  H.  Muhlenberg,  M.D.,  of  Reading,  Pa. 

At  a  later  period  another  mission  society  was 
organized  in  Germany  by  the  professors  of  the 
Julius  Charles  University,  located  in  Helmstaedt, 
Ducliy  of  Brunswick.  This  society  sent  a  number 
of  laborers  to  Korth  Carolina.  Rev.  Dr.  Velthu- 
sen  was  the  leading  spirit  of  that  organization, 
which  provided  for  the  support  of  Rev.  Nussmann, 
and  sent  out  Revs.  Storch  and  Roschen  to  labor 
among  the  scattered  and  neglected  Germans  in 
North  Carolina. 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  49 

The  reports  of  these  missionaries  were  published 
from  time  to  time,  as  soon  as  they  reached  the 
Society  in  Hehiistaedt.  Some  of  them  have  re- 
cently been  brought  to  light,  but  others  are  still 
missing.  They  are  interesting  to  the  antiquarian, 
and  though  not  voluminous,  they  supply  an  im- 
portant link  in  the  chain  of  narrative  concerning 
the  Grerman  settlers  in  North  Carolina. 

]^o  documents  can  be  more  valuable  to  the  his- 
torian than  the  reports  of  these  missionaries,  which 
were  written  by  learned,  conscientious  and  reliable 
men,  who  were  themselves  residents  in  the  colo- 
nies, and  were  well  acquainted  with  facts  that 
transpired  under  their  immediate  observation.  An 
insight  into  the  difficulties,  the  customs,  and  the 
spirit  of  those  times  is  thus  furnished,  which  en- 
ables the  writer  of  history  to  understand  the  more 
readil}^  the  events  of  a  succeeding  age,  which  are 
but  imperfectly  reported  in  isolated  state  docu- 
ments. 

Section  5.  John  Lederer's  Explorations^  A.D.  1670. 

Having  now  furnished  the  reader  with  such  his- 
torical facts  of  a  general  character,  which  must 
necessarily  be  known  in  order  to  understand  cor- 
rectly the  history  of  the  German  colonies  in  the 
Carolinas,  inasmuch  as  those  facts  likewise  apply 
to  these  two  provinces,  and  frequent  allusion  must 
be  made  to  those  events,  it  is  time  to  confine  our 
attention  to  the  principal  subject  of  this  history, 
which  is  introduced  b}^  an  account  of  John  Leder- 
er's  explorations.     This  will  afford  us  an  insight 

5 


50  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

into  the  condition  of  these  two  provinces  before 
they  were  colonized  to  any  extent.  Tliis  narrative 
of  Lederer's  explorations  will  be  none  the  less 
welcome  to  the  reader,  when  it  is  remembered  that 
tliis  early  explorer  was  of  the  same  nation,  whose 
liistory  in  the  Carolinas  is  made  the  subject  of  this 
volume. 

Thus  the  first  German  that  set  foot  upon  the 
soil  of  Carolina  was  John  Lederer,  who  was  sent 
on  three  difterent  expeditions  by  Sir  William 
Berkeley,  Governor  of  the  Colony  of  Virginia,  to 
explore  the  lands  lying  south  and  west  of  the  James 
River,  during  the  years  1669  and  1670. 

From  his  map  of  the  country  which  he  explored, 
as  well  as  from  his  journal,  we  gather  the  fact  that 
he  passed  through  ]^orth  Carolina,  and  proceeded 
as  far  into  South  Carolina  as  the  Santee  River. 
North  and  South  Carolina  were  at  that  time  one 
province,  and  had  passed,  but  a  few  years  previous, 
A.D.  1663,  by  a  grant  of  Charles  II,  into  the  hands 
of  several  noblemen  in  England,  who  were  styled 
*'  The  Lords-Proprietors." 

At  the  time  when  Lederer  made  his  first  explor- 
ing tour,  South  Carolina  was  destitute  of  any  white 
settlers,  whilst  the  eastern  portion  of  ]^orth  Caro- 
lina had  been  improved  by  only  two  small  colo- 
nies, the  one  on  Albemarle  Sound,  the  other  on 
Clarendon  (now  Cape  Fear)  River.  The  entire 
interior  and  western  part  of  I^orth  Carolina,  with 
the  whole  of  the  territory  of  South  Carolina,  con- 
stituted as  yet  the  undisturbed  home  of  the  red 
man  of  the  forest.     However,  the  same  year  that 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  51 

Joliii  Lederer  reached  the  interior  of  South  Caro- 
lina, the  lirst  EngUsh  colony,  under  Colonel  Wil- 
liam Sayle  as  their  Governor,  arrived  at  Port 
Eoyal,  near  Beaufort,  and  a  few  months  later 
located  themselves,  ''for  the  convenience  of  pas- 
turage and  tillage,"  on  tlie  hanks  of  the  Ashley 
Eiver,  and  near  its  mouth  laid  the  foundation  of 
Old  Charlestown,  A.D.  1670. 

Lederer  was  a  man  of  learning.  His  journal 
was  w^ritten  in  the  Latin  language,  his  map  indi- 
cates a  knowledge  of  geographical  calculation, 
considering  the  circumstances  and  advantages  of 
those  times,  and  the  difficulties  under  which  he 
labored.  The  translator  of  his  journal.  Sir  Wil- 
liam Talbot,  Governor  of  Maryland,  also  speaks 
highly  of  his  literary  attainments. 

Concerning  his  courageous  and  enterprising 
disposition  and  the  success  of  his  explorations,  we 
must  permit  Eev.  Dr.  Hawks  to  speak,  who  in- 
forms us  that  "John  Lederer  was  a  learned  Ger- 
man, who  lived  in  Virginia  during  the  administra- 
tion of  Sir  William  Berkeley.  Little  was  then 
known  of  the  mountainous  part  of  that  State,  or 
of  w^hat  was  beyond.  Berkeley  commissioned 
Lederer  to  make  explorations,  and  accordingly  he 
went  upon  three  several  expeditions.  The  first 
was  from  the  head  of  York  Eiver  due  west  to  the 
Appalachian  Mountains.  The  second  was  from 
the  falls  of  the  James  Eiver  west  and  southwest, 
which  brought  him  into  Carolina.  The  third  was 
from  the  falls  of  the  Eappahannock  westward  to- 
wards the  mountains. 


52  TflE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

*'  Certain  Englishmen  were  appointed  bj  Berke- 
ley to  accompany  him.  These,  however,  forsook 
him,  and  turned  back.  Lederer  proceeded  not- 
withstanding alone,  and  on  his  return  to  Virginia, 
which,  by  the  way,  was  never  expected,  met  with 
insult  and  reproaches,  instead  of  the  cordial  wel- 
come to  which  he  w^as  entitled.  For  this  he  was 
indebted  to  his  English  companions  who  had  for- 
saken him ;  and  so  active  were  they  in  creating  a 
prejudice  against  him,  that  he  was  not  safe  among 
the  people  of  Virginia,  who  had  been  tokl  that  the 
public  taxes  of  that  year  had  all  been  expended  in 
his  wanderings." 

Thus  it  appears  that,  like  Christopher  Colum- 
bus, John  Lederer  never  received  that  respect  and 
gratitude  which  was  due  him  by  his  fellow-citi- 
zens, though  they  were  greatly  benefited  by  his 
scientific  and  hazardous  exploits.  How  frequently 
does  it  happen  that  to  future  generations  it  is  left 
to  award  tribute  of  just  praise  to  merit,  which  an 
ignorant  and  selfish  populace  could  not  appreciate, 
who  persecute  their  contemporaries  for  having  ex- 
celled their  fellow-men  in  literature,  science,  or 
moral  excellence. 

The  following  brief  extract  from  Lederer's  jour- 
nal will  afibrd  us  a  nearer  acquaintance  with  the 
character  and  attainments  of  this  Vv^orthy  and  sci- 
entific German. 

"The  20th  of  May,  1670,  one  Major  Harris  and 
myself,  with  twenty  Christian  horse  (horsemen) 
and  five  Indians,  marched  from  the  falls  of  the 
James  River,  in  Virginia,  towards  the  Monakins; 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  53 

and  on  the  22d  we  were  welcomed  by  them  with 
volleys  of  shot.  ISTear  this  village  we  observed  a 
pyramid  of  stones  piled  np  together,  which  their 
priests  told  lis  was  the  number  of  an  Indian  colony, 
drawn  ont  by  lot  froni  a  neighbor  country  over- 
peopled, and  led  hither  by  one  Monack,  from 
whom  they  take  the  name  Monakin.  Here,  in- 
quiring the  way  to  the  mountains,  an  ancient  man 
described  with  a  staff  two  paths  on  the  ground, 
one  pointing  to  the  Mahocks,  and  the  other  to  the 
ITahyssans.  But  my  English  companions,  slight- 
ing the  Indian's  directions,  shaped  their  course  by 
the  compass  due  west;  and,  therefore,  it  fell  out 
with  us  as  it  does  with  those  land-crabs,  that, 
crawling  backward  in  a  direct  line,  avoid  not  the 
trees  that  stand  in  their  way,  but  climbing  over 
their  very  tops,  come  down  again  on  the  other 
side,  and  so  after  a  day's  labor  gain  not  above  two 
feet  of  ground.  Thus  we,  obstinately  pursuing  a 
due  west  course,  rode  over  steep  and  ragged  cliffs, 
which  beat  our  horses  quite  off  the  hoof.  In  these 
mountains  we  wandered  from  the  25th  of  May  till 
the  3d  of  June,  finding  very  little  sustenance  for 
man  or  horse,  as  these  places  are  destitute  both  of 
grain  and  herbage. 

"The  3d  of  June  we  came  to  the  soutli  branch 
of  the  James  River,  which  Major  Harris,  observ- 
ing to  run  northwardly,  vainly  imagined  to  be  an 
arm  of  the  lake  of  Canada,  and  was  so  transported 
with  this  fancy  that  he  would  have  raised  a  pillar 
to  the  discovery  if  the  fear  of  the  Mahock  Indians 
and   want  of  food   had   permitted    him   to  stay. 


54  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Here  I  moved  to  cross  the  river  and  march  on, 
but  the  rest  of  the  company  were  so  weary  of  the 
enterprise  that,  crying  out,  one  and  all,  they  would 
have  offered  violence  to  me  had  I  not  been  pro- 
vided with  a  private  commission  from  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Virginia  to  proceed  though  the  rest  of 
the  company  should  abandon  me,  the  sight  of 
which  laid  their  far3\ 

''The  air  in  these  parts  was  so  moist  that  all 
our  biscuits  became  mouldy  and  unfit  to  be  eaten, 
so  that  some  nicer  stomachs,  who  at  our  setting 
out  laughed  at  my  provision  of  Indian  corn  meal 
parched,  would  gladly  now  have  shared  with  me ; 
but  I  being  determined  to  go  upon  further  discov- 
eries, refused  to  part  with  any  of  that  which  was 
to  be  my  most  necessary  sustenance.  The  5th  of 
June  my  company  and  I  parted  good  friends,  they 
back  again,  and  I,  with  one  Susquehannah  Indian 
only,  named  Jackzetavon,  in  pursuit  of  my  first 
enterprise,  changing  my  course  from  west  to 
southwest  and  by  south,  to  avoid  the  mountains. 
Major  Hnrris,  in  parting,  gave  me  a  gun,  believ- 
ing me  a  lost  man,  and  given  up  as  a  prey  to  In- 
dians or  savage  beasts,  which  made  him  the  bolder 
to  report  strange  things  in  his  own  praise  and  my 
disparagement,  presuming  I  would  never  appear 
to  disprove  him.  This,  I  suppose,  and  no  other, 
was  the  cause  that  he  did  with  so  much  industry 
procure  me  discredit  and  odium;  but  I  have  lost 
nothing  by  it  but  what  I  never  studied  to  gain, 
which  is  popular  applause." 

Lederer  had  several  narrow  escapes  among  the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  55 

Indians;  often  was  he  in  clanger  of  losing  his  life, 
or  of  being  taken  captive;  but  at  other  times  he 
was  kindly  treated  by  them,  and,  on  one  occasion, 
the  daughter  of  one  of  their  Indian  kings  was 
offered  to  him  in  marriage,  which  courtesy,  how- 
ever, he  declined,  and  pursued  his  exploring  jour- 
ney to  the  close,  ending  it  at  Lake  Usherj^  This 
lake  is  supposed  to  be  nothing  more  than  a  por- 
tion of  tlie  waters  of  Santee  River  in  South  Caro- 
lina, as  we  learn  from  the  narrative  of  Col.  Byrd, 
that  the  Indians  who  were  living  along  the  Santee 
River  were  called  Usheries.  Besides,  if  we  presume 
that  Lederer  was  in  possession  of  the  instruments 
necessary  to  make  correct  calculations  of  degrees 
of  latitude,  we  are  then  warranted  to  conclude, 
from  the  fac-simile  of  his  map,  where  the  degrees 
of  latitude  are  noted  on  the  margin,  that  his  travels 
extended  as  far  south  as  33J-  degrees,  north  lati- 
tude, which  would  likewise  fix  the  terminus  of  his 
journey  on  or  near  the  banks  of  the  Santee  River, 
and  the  lake  of  which  he  speaks  must  have  been 
one  of  those  immense  swamps  with  which  this 
river  abounds. 

On  his  homeward  journey  he  took  another  route, 
and  arrived  safely  in  Virginia,  where  he  was  re- 
proached and  insulted  in  such  a  manner  that  he 
went  to  Maryland,  where  he  linally  succeeded  in 
obtaining  a  hearing  from  the  Governor,  Sir  Wil- 
liam Talbot,  and. in  submitting  his  papers  to  him. 
The  Governor,  though  at  first  much  prejudiced 
against  the  man  by  the  stories  he  had  heard,  yet 
found  him,  as  he  says,  ^'a  modest,  ingenious  per- 


56  THE   LUTHERAN^   CHURCH 

son,  and  a  pretty  scholar;"  and  Lederer  vindicated 
himself  "with  so  convincing  reason  and  circum- 
stance," as  Governor  Talbot  says,  that  he  quite 
removed  all  unfavorable  impressions,  and  the 
governor  himself  took  the  trouble  to  translate  his 
journal  from  the  Latin,  and  published  Lederer's 
account  of  his  explorations. 

Tlie  influence  that  this  German  explorer  exerted 
b\'  his  account  of  the  country  he  visited  must  have 
liad  its  efi:ect  in  the  speedy  settling  of  the  Carolinas, 
inducing  man}'  of  our  forefathers  to  emigrate  to 
this  countr}^,  and  seek  their  fortunes  in  the  wilds 
of  America;  it  is  certain  that,  but  ten  years  later, 
in  1680,  the  tide  of  German  emigration  to  America 
commenced  its  flow;  doubtless  such  men  as  John 
Lederer,  and  later,  Louis  Mitchell,  whose  journals 
of  explorations  were  published,  contributed  greatly 
towards  producing  this  happy  result,  and  in  mak- 
ing America  wealth}^  in  the  development  of  her 
agricultural  resources,  when  the  thrifty  farmers  of 
Germany  tilled  her  virgin  soil. 

Section  6.   The  Dutch  colony  of  Lutherans  on  James 
Island^  South  Carolina^  A.D.  1674- 

The  only  settlement  in  South  Carolina  at  this 
period  was  Old  Charlestown,  located  on  the 
Ashley  Rivei*,  several  miles  distant  from  where 
the  present  Charleston  now  stands.  The  settlers, 
who  liad  been  located  there  but  little  over  three 
years,  struggled  for  a  name  and  existence  against 
famine  and  other  adverse   circumstances,  wdien. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  57 

fortunately,  ''dnriiig  tlie  time  Sir  John  Yearaans 
was  governor  of  Carolina,  the  colony  received 
a  great  addition  to  its  strength  from  the  Dutch 
settlement  of  Nova  Belgia,"  now  'New  York, 
which  province  surrendered,  as  is  well  known, 
without  any  resistance,  to  the  armament  com- 
manded by  Sir  Robert  Carr,  and  became  subject 
to  the  British  crown. 

"  Charles  II  donated  Nova  Belgia  to  his  brother, 
the  Duke  of  York,"  after  whom  its  name  was 
changed  to  New  York,  "who  governed  it  with 
the  same  arbitrary  principles  which  afterwards 
rendered  him  so  obnoxious  to  the  English  nation. 
After  the  conquest  many  of  the  Dutch  colonists 
who  were  discontented  with  their  situation,  had 
formed  resolutions  of  moving  to  other  provinces. 
The  proprietors  of  Carolina  offered  them  lands  and 
encouragement  in  their  Palatinate,  and  sent  their 
ships,  Blessing  and  Phoenix,  which  brought  a 
number  of  Dutch  families  to  Charlestown. 

"Stephen  Bull,  surveyor-general  of  the  colony, 
had  instruction  to  mark  out  lands  on  the  south- 
west side  of  Ashley  River,  viz.,  on  James  Island, 
for  their  accommodation.  There  each  of  the 
Dutch  emigrants  drew  lots  for  their  property,  and 
founded  a  town,  which  was  called  Jamestown. 
This  was  the  first  colony  of  Dutch  who  settled 
in  Carolina,  whose  industry  surmounted  incredible 
hardships,  and  whose  success  induced  many  from 
ancient  Belgia  afterwards  to  follow  them  to  the 
Western  world."  {HewaWs  Hist,  of  S.  C.  and  Geo., 
vol.  i,  p.  73.) 


58  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Whether  these  Dutch  settlers  had  their  pastor 
or  not,  history  does  not  inform  us;  it  is  known, 
however,  that  they  constituted  a  distinct  class 
among  those  numerous  dissenters,  who  protested 
against  that  unjust  legislation  of  A.D.  1704,  which 
estahhshed  the  Church  of  England  in  the  two 
Carol! n as  as  the  Church  of  the  State,  and  sup- 
ported by  the  public  treasur3\  A  full  account  of 
this  transaction  may  not  be  uninteresting,  and  ap- 
pears to  be  necessary  for  the  better  understanding 
of  all  the  facts  and  circumstances  in  the  case;  the 
following  narrative  is  gathered  from  various  his- 
torical works. 

The  two  first  acts  of  the  Legislature,  which  have 
been  found  in  the  records  of  the  Secretary's  office, 
were  but  right  and  proper.  They  enjoined  the 
observance  of  the  Lord's  day,  commonly  called 
Sunday,  and  prohibited  sundry  gross  immoralities, 
particularly  ''idleness,  drunkenness,  and  swear- 
ing;" thus  far  the  Government  aided  religion  in 
the  colony.  [Ramsay's  Hist  of  S.  C,  vol.  ii,  p.  2.) 

"Both  parts  of  Carolina  were  in  a  deplorable 
state  as  to  religion.  Such  of  the  inhabitants  as 
were  born,  or  had  grown  up  to  manhood,  in  Caro- 
lina, were  almost  utter  strangers  to  any  public 
worship  of  the  Deity.  Among  the  first  emigrants 
some  sense  of  religion  had  been,  for  a  while,  pre- 
served; but  the  next  generation,  reared  in  a  wil- 
derness in  which  divine  service  was  hardly  ever 
performed,  and  where  private  devotions  cannot  be 
supposed  to  have  been  much  attended  to,  were 
rather  remarkable  for  loose,  licentious  principles, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  59 

and  the  fandameiital  doctrines  of  the  Christian 
religion  were  often  treated  with  the  ridicule  of 
professed  infidelity.  The  population  of  the  colony 
was  composed  of  individuals  of  different  nations, 
and  consequently  of  various  sects:  Scotch  Presby- 
terians, Dutch  Lutherans,  French  Calvinists,  Irish 
Catholics,  English  Churchmen,  Quakers,  and  Dis- 
senters, emigrants  from  Bermuda  and  the  "West 
Indies,  which,  from  their  late  settlements,  could 
not  be  places  remarkable  for  the  education  of 
young  people  in  Christianity  and  morality."  [31ar- 
tin's  Hist,  of  N.  C,  vol.  i,  p.  218.) 

"In  the  year  1698,  one  step  farther  was  taken 
b}^  an  act  of  the  Legislature  'to  settle  a  mainte- 
nance on  a  minister  of  the  Church  of  England  in 
Charleston.'  This  excited  neither  suspicion  nor 
alarm  among  the  Dissenters,  for  the  minister  in 
whose  favor  the  law  operated  was  a  worthy,  good 
man ;  and  the  small  sura  allowed  him  was  inade- 
quate to  his  services.  However,  the  precedent 
thus  set  by  the  Legislature,  being  acquiesced  in 
by  the  people,  paved  the  way  for  an  ecclesiastical 
establishment.  In  the  year  1704,  when  the  white 
population  of  South  Carolina  was  between  five 
and  six  thousand,  when  the  Episcopalians  had 
only  one  church  in  the  province,  and  the  Dis- 
senters had  three  in  Charleston,  and  one  in  the 
country,  the  former  were  so  far  favored  as  to  ob- 
tain a  legal  establishment.  Most  of  the  proprietors 
and  public  officers  of  the  province,  and  particu- 
larly the  Governor,  Sir  Nathaniel  Johnson,  were 
zealously  attached    to   the    Church    of  England. 


60  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Believing  in  the  current  creed  of  the  times,  that 
an  established  religion  was  essential  to  the  sup- 
port of  civil  government,  thej  concerted  measures 
for  endowing  the  church  of  the  mother  country, 
and  advancing  it  in  Carolina  to  a  legal  pre-emi- 
nence." [Ramsaii^  vol.  ii,  p.  2.) 

"Preparatory  thereto  Governor  Johnson,  as- 
sisted by  the  principal  officers  of  the  southern 
part  of  the  province,  exerted  his  influence  with 
so  much  success,  as  to  procure  the  election  of  a 
sufficient  number  of  Episcopalians,  who  were  dis- 
posed to  forward  his  views.  ISTotwithstanding  the 
great  opposition  which  the  bill  received,  it  passed 
into  law.  The  southern  part  of  Carolina  was  di- 
vided into  ten  parishes,  and  provision  was  made 
for  the  support  of  ministers,  the  erection  of 
churches  and  glebes;  and  an  act  was  passed  re- 
quiring members  of  Assembly  to  conform  to  the 
religious  worship  in  the  province,  according  to 
the  Church  of  England,  and  to  receive  the  sacra- 
ment of  the  Lord's  Supper  according  to  the  rites 
and  usages  of  that  Church."  (Martin.,  vol.  i,  pp. 
218,  219.) 

"  This  act  passed  the  lower  house  by  a  majority 
of  oidy  one  vote.  It  virtually  excluded  from  a 
seat  in  tlie  Legislature  all  who  were  Dissenters, 
erected  an  aristocracy,  and  gave  a  monopoly  of 
power  to  one  sect,  though  far  from  being  a  ma- 
jority of  the  inhabitants.  In  this  way  did  Gran- 
ville, one  of  the  Lords-Proprietors,  who  had  thus 
instructed  the  governors  of  Carolina,  expect  to 
effect  his  purposes  of  impious  bigotry;  he,  how- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  61 

ever,  found  it  ver}-  bard  work  in  which  he  was 
engaged,  to  fuse  by  one  act  of  human  legishition 
all  the  various  dissenting  denominations  into  one 
lump  of  piety  and  orthodoxy.  The  usual  conse- 
quences followed.  Animosities  took  place  and 
spread  in  every  direction.  Moderate  men  of  the 
fiivored  church  considered  the  law  impolitic  and 
hostile  to  the  prosperity  of  the  province.  Dis- 
senters of  all  denominations,  both  in  North  and 
South  Carolina,  made  a  common  cause  in  endeav- 
oring to  obtain  its  repeal.  The  inhabitants  of 
Colleton,  which  was  chiefly  settled  by  Dissenters, 
drew  up  a  statement  of  their  sufferings  by  this 
oppressive  act,  wdiich  they  transmitted  by  John 
Ashe,  an  influential  character  among  them,  to  lay 
their  grievances  before  the  Lords-Proprietors. 

^'  The  Governor  succeeded  in  preventing  this 
gentleman's  obtaining  a  passage  to  England  in  any 
of  the  ships  in  Charleston;  he  was  therefore  com- 
pelled to  travel  by  land  to  Virginia,  where  he  em- 
barked. On  his  way  he  stopped  in  the  county  of 
Albemarle,  where  he  was  received  with  great  re- 
spect and  cordiality,  and  the  people,  feeling  the 
same  interest  as  his  constituents  in  the  object  of 
his  mission,  prevailed  on  Edmund  Porter  to  ac- 
company him,  in  order  to  aid,  by  the  representa- 
tions of  the  people  of  the  northern  part  of  the 
province,  the  object  wdiich  the  people  of  Carolina 
had  much  at  heart."  [Ramsay^  vol.  ii,  p.  3.) 

When  these  commissioners  from  N^orth  and 
South  Carolina  arrived  in  England,  the  Palatine 


62  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

received  them  as  "the  emissaries  of  their  lord- 
ships' vassals,"  with  considerable  coldness. 

Mr.  Ashe,  unable  to  effect  the  object  of  his  mis- 
sion by  his  representations  to  the  Lords-Proprie- 
tors, and  finding  the  public  sentiment  in  his  favor, 
determined  on  raising  it  into  action,  by  a  candid 
representation  of  the  grievances  of  his  constituents; 
but  death  prevented  the  intended  appeal.  His 
papers  fell  into  the  hands  of  those  who  had  an  in- 
terest to  suppress  the  expression  of  his  sentiments. 
Thus  was  this  first  eflbrt  of  the  people  to  throw  ofiT 
a  galling  ecclesiastical  yoke  frustrated ;  it  proved 
a  failure  for  that  time. 

Sir  Nathaniel  Johnson,  governor  of  Carolina, 
intent  upon  carrying  the  Palatine's  views  into  exe- 
cution, overcame  every  obstacle  in  his  way.  A  cor- 
poration, composed  of  twenty  individuals,  was  in- 
stituted, with  power  to  exercise  high  ecclesiastical 
jurisdiction.  Authority  was  given  it  to  deprive 
ministers  of  their  livings,  and  the  acts  of  the  Legis- 
lature, of  which  John  Ashe  had  gone  to  procure 
the  repeal,  were  executed  with  great  zeal  and 
rigor.  Thus  did  Lord  Granville,  a  bigoted  mem- 
ber of  the  Church  of  England,  who  had  instructed 
Governor  Johnson  to  establish  that  church  by 
legal  enactment,  eflfect  his  purpose. 

The  Dissenters  of  all  denominations  were  exas- 
perated ;  a  migration  to  Pennsylvania  was  spoken 
of,  but  it  was  at  last  determined  to  send  Joseph 
Boon  to  England,  with  a  petition  to  the  House  of 
Lords.  On  the  introduction  to  this  petition,  the 
House,  on  motion  of  Lord  Granville,  the  Palatine 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  63 

of  Carolina,  heard  counsel  at  its  bar,  in  behalf  of 
the  Lords-Proprietors,  and,  after  some  debate, 
came  to  a  resolution,  "  that  the  laws  complained 
of  were  founded  on  falsity  in  matter  of  tact,  re- 
pugnant to  the  laws  of  England,  contrary  to  the 
charter  of  the  Lords-Proprietors,  an  encourage- 
ment to  atheism  and  ir religion,  destructive  to 
trade,  and  tended  to  the  ruin  and  depopulation  of 
the  province." 

The  Lords  next  addressed  the  Queen,  beseeching 
her  to  use  the  most  effectual  means  to  deliver  the 
Province  of  Carolina  from  the  "arbitrary  oppres- 
sion under  which  it  lay,  and  to  order  the  pro- 
prietors of  it  to  be  prosecuted  according  to  law.'' 
The  subject  was  referred  to  the  Lords-Commis- 
sioners of  Trade  and  Plantations,  who  reported 
that  the  facts  stated  in  the  petition  were  true; 
that  the  powers  granted  by  the  charter  had  been 
abused;  that  the  grantees  had  incurred  a  forfeiture 
of  it;  and  recommended  that  process  might  be 
ordered  to  issue  accordingly  against  their  lord- 
ships. 

The  Queen's  law  servants  were  thereupon  di- 
rected to  procure  a  writ  of  quo  loarranto,  and  to 
report  what  might  more  effectually  be  done,  in 
order  that  the  Queen  might  take  the  government 
of  Carolina  into  her  own  hands.  The  matter  was, 
however,  abandoned,  and  no  step  was  taken  to 
annul  the  charter,  or  to  relieve  the  people.  {Ram- 
say, vol.  ii,  p.  3.) 

From  this  narrative  we  learn  that  our  Lutheran 
brethren,  the  Dutch  colonists  of  South  Carolina 


64  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH    . 

on  James  Island,  likewise  suffered  severely  by  this 
impious  act  of  human  legislation,  and  that  tliey 
were  not  attached  to  the  principles  and  usages  of 
the  Church  of  England,  otherwise  they  never 
would  have  been  classed  by  all  historians  of  the 
tw^o  Carolinas  among  the  number  of  those  who 
dissented  from  that  Church,  and  protested  against 
its  establishment  by  law. 

It  may  be  asked,  what  reasons  we  have  to  con- 
clude that  the  Dutch  settlers  on  James  Island  were 
members  of  the  Lutheran  Church  ?  To  which  we 
reply,  that  they  are  so  denominated  by  all  histo- 
rians who  have  given  us  an  account  of  the  oppres- 
sive act  instigated  by  Lord  Granville,  and  carried 
into  effect  by  Governor  N.  Johnson;  consequently 
we  conclude  that  these  settlers  from  Nova  Belgia 
(now  ^ew  York)  were  mostly,  if  not  all,  Lu- 
therans. However,  should  this  doubt  arise,  that 
Englishmen  were  in  the  habit  of  denominating 
Germans  as  Duich,  thus  confounding  them  w^ith 
Hollanders,  and  that  thus  this  mistake  might  very 
easil}^  arise,  we  can  safely  meet  this  doubt  w^ith 
the  fact,  that  at  this  early  period,  A.  D.  1704,  there 
were  no  other  Lutheran  Protestants,  of  either  Ger- 
man or  Swiss  origin,  in  all  the  territory  of  the  two 
Carolinas;  the  first  German  emigrants  to  these 
provinces  were  the  Palatines,  and  they  did  not 
arrive  at  N'ewbern,  N.  C,  until  1709,  and  in  South 
Carolina  about  the  same  time.  Every  history  of 
the  two  provinces,  as  well  as  the  records  in  the 
office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  State,  have  been 
thoroughly  examined,  and  no  trace  of  any  other 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  65 

Lutheran  colony  could  be  foniul  for  this  early 
period.  The  conclusion  is,  therefore,  correct,  that 
the  Dutch  Lutherans  mentioned  are  none  other 
than  the  Dutch  settlers  of  James  Island. 

This  opinion  is  confirmed  by  examining  llev. 
Dr.  Schaeffer's  Early  History  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  America,  in  which  it  will  be  seen, 
that  in  Holland  there  were  Dutch  Lutherans  as 
well  as  Dutch  Reformed,  at  this  period,  and  that 
a  great  many  of  the  Dutch  settlers  of  Nova  Belgia 
(now  ]^ew  York)  w^ere  of  the  Lutheran  faith,  and 
were,  on  that  very  account,  sorely  persecuted  by 
Governor  Stu'yvesant.  Dr.  Schaelier  states,  p.  G4: 
"  Tlie  Lutherans  had  long  been  accustomed  to 
meet  in  their  own  dwellings  for  purposes  of  social 
devotion.  Against  these  meetings,  called  'con- 
venticles' in  contempt,  Stuyvesant  published  a 
liery  proclamation,  showed  that  the  Lutherans 
could  expect  no  indulgence  from  him,  encouraged 
the  Dutch  Reformed  clergy  in  enforcing  their  bap- 
tismal formulary,  so  obnoxious  to  the  Lutherans, 
and  continued  to  punish  by  fines  and  imprison- 
ment those  wdio  refused  submission."  Their  first 
minister,  the  Rev.  John  Ernest  Goetwater,  who 
was  sent  to  them  by  the  Lutheran  Consistory  of 
Amsterdam,  Holland,  upon  his  arrival  at  New 
Amsterdam  (New  York),  "  was  cited  to  appear 
before  the  civil  tribunal,  and  forbidden  to  preach, 
or  to  hold  any  Lutheran  '  conventicles;'  in  short, 
he  was  forthwith  banished  from  New  Amsterdam  ; 
and  having  spent  some  few  weeks  in  sickness  in 
the  suburbs  of  the  city,  he  embarked,  in  the  month 

6 


QQ  THE   LUTHEKAN    CHURCH 

of  October,  aiul  returned  to  Holland."  {Schaefer, 
p.  65.)  Besides,  if  Rev.  Dr.  Howe  is  correct  in 
dating  the  arrival  of  the  Dutch  settlers  on  James 
Island,  S.  C,  as  far  back  as  December,  1671,  then 
certainly  these  Dutch  settlers  must  all,  or  nearly 
all,  have  been  Lutherans,  for 'that  was  the  period 
when  they  suffered  such  fierce  persecutions  from 
Governor  Stuyvesant,  before  the  reins  of  his  gov- 
ernment had  yet  passed  into  the  hands  of  the 
English,  and  the  Dutch  Lutherans  were  doubtless 
greatly  rejoiced  to  have  an  opportunity  of  escap- 
ing religious  intolerance,  by  removing  to  South 
Carolina  in  the  proprietary  government's  ships, 
Blessing  and  Phoenix;  all  of  which  must  of  neces- 
sity stand  opposed  to  the  statement  found  in  Dr. 
Howe's  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
South  Carolina,  p.  86:  "The  Dutch  settlers  were 
of  tlie  Presbyterian  Church  of  Holland." 

History  also  informs  us  of  the  final  fate  of  this 
Dutch  colony  as  follows  :  *'  The  Dutch  inhabitants 
of  Jamestown,  on  James  Island,  afterwards  find- 
ing their  situation  too  narrow  and  circumscribed, 
in  process  of  time  spread  themselves  through  the 
country,  where  they  soon  lost  their  individuality 
by  marriage  with  the  other  settlers,  and  their 
town  was  totally  deserted."  [Heivait,  vol.  i,  p.  73.) 

AVe  sometimes  meet  with  traces  of  Dutch  set- 
tlers in  the  Carolinas  and  Georgia  at  the  present 
day;  they  may  be  supposed  to  be  the  descendants 
of  this  early  Dutch  colony  on  James  Island;  they 
themselves,  as  well  as  their  surnames,  inform  us 
that  they  are  descendants  of  Dutch  ancestry,  but 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  67 

tliej  remember  no  longer  their  own  colonial  his- 
tory, it  being  so  remote  that  even  tradition  has 
left  them  no  traces  of  the  same.  Many  of  these 
are  still  in  full  connection  with  the  Lutheran 
Church,  and  retain  a  strong  attachment  to  her 
doctrines  and  usages. 


Section  7.   The  colony  of  Palatinate  and  Siciss  Ger- 
mans in  New-Berne^  North  Carolina^  A.D.  1710. 

That  love!}'  and  picturesque  portion  of  Ger- 
many, situated  on  both  sides  of  the  river  Rhine, 
attached  now  to  Bavaria  and  Baden,  formed  at 
one  time  the  country  known  in  history  as  "  The 
Palatinate."  Its  inhabitants  were  mostly  Protest- 
ants, having  early  embraced  the  principles  of  the 
Reformation,  but  were  compelled  to  suffer  grievous 
persecutions  on  account  of  their  religion.  In  1622, 
Heidelberg,  the  principal  city  of  the  Palatinate, 
w^as  laid  in  a  heap  of  smouldering  ruins  by  General 
Tilly,  the  leader  of  the  Spanish  army,  during  the 
thirty  years'  war  between  the  Romanists  and  the 
Protestants.  In  the  destruction  of  this  city,  the 
University  of  Heidelberg  was  plundered  of  its 
immense  library,  and  presented  to  Pope  Gregory 
XY.  The  city  was  afterwards  rebuilt,  and  re- 
mained in  peace  for  some  time,  though  deprived 
of  much  of  its  former  greatness,  until  a  new 
source  of  tribulation  arose,  at  the  time  when  the 
Protestant  Electoral  house  became  extinct,  and  a 
bloody  war  with  France  ensued,  which,  in  1689, 


68  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

again   reduced   almost   the   entire  city,  with   its 
beautiful  palace  and  gardens,  into  a  heap  of  ruins. 
But  the  cup  of  calamity  and  sorrow  w^as  not  yet 
full  for  the  inhabitants  of  this  unfortunate  country. 
During  the  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession,  a  de- 
scription of  which  is  given  in  Section  3d,  page  37, 
of  this  history,  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Palatinate,  without  shelter  or  home,  were 
driven  from   their  fatherland  to  seek   an  asylum 
in  foreign  countries.      A  knowledge  of  their  sad 
condition  reached  England,  and  attracted  the  no- 
tice of  that  magnanimous  and  tender-hearted  sov- 
ereign. Queen   Anne,  who  invited   thousands  of 
these  unfortunate  people  to  the  hospitable  shores 
of  her  realm,  where  every  provision  which  hu- 
manity could  devise  was  made  for  their  welfare. 
"  Great  sympathy,"  says  Dr.  Hawks,  in  his  His- 
tory of  E"orth  Carolina,  "  was  felt  for  these  poor 
creatures,  whose  sin  was  Protestantism   merely; 
the  Queen  of  England,  pitying  their  condition,  by 
her  proclamation  in  1708,  offered  them  protection 
in   her  dominions,  and  about  twelve  thousand  of 
them  went  to  England." 

Numbers  of  tliese  exiles,  about  four  thousand 
at  one  time,  were  afterwards  sent,  with  most 
liberal  provisions,  to  the  Province  of  ISTew  York, 
where  the  benevolent  Queen  made  them  large 
grants  of  land  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson  River, 
where  the  towns  of  Newburg  and  New  Windsor 
now  stand.  Other  grants  were  made,  through  the 
instrumentality  of  Queen  Anne,  by  the  Proprie- 
tary government,  along  the  banks  of  the  Con- 
garee  River,  in  South  Carolina. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  69 

However,  there  were  still  many  of  these  German 
Protestants  remaining  in  England,  too  poor  to  help 
themselves,  and  living  npon  the  charities  of  the 
Queen  and  her  benevolent  subjects,  for  whom 
there  had  as  yet  no  provision  been  made  for  their 
emigration  to  America,  when  Providence  opened 
another  and  a  new  way  before  them. 

Baron  Christopher  de  GrafFenreid,  a  Swiss  noble- 
man from  Berne,  induced  a  large  number  of 
his  countrymen,  about  fifteen  hundred  souls,  to 
migrate  with  him  to  America.  They  first  landed 
in  England,  and  whilst  there  the  Baron  met  with 
Louis  Mitchell  in  the  city  of  London,  who  had  been 
to  America,  had  spent  a  number  of  years  on  that 
continent,  and  was  well  acquainted  with  the  coun- 
try; he  had  been  sent  over  by  the  Canton  of 
Berne  as  an  exploring  agent,  in  order  to  search 
for  a  large  and  vacant  tract  of  land,  suitable  for 
a  colony,  either  in  Pennsylvania,  Virginia,  or 
Carolina.  These  two  gentlemen,  acting  in  con- 
cert, determined  to  accept  of  the  fair  proposals  of 
the  Lords-Proprietors,  and  settle  their  colony  in 
Carolina.  They  accordingly  purchased  ten  thou- 
sand acres  from  their  lordships,  which  they  were 
permitted  to  locate  in  one  bod}',  on  or  between 
the  Neuse  and  Cape  Fear  Rivers,  or  any  of  their 
tributaries.  They  paid  twenty  shillings  sterling 
for  each  hundred  acres,  and  bound  themselves  to 
a  quit-rent  of  the  sum  of  sixpence  yearly  for  every 
hundred.  It  was  also  agreed  that  instruction 
should  be  given  to  the  surveyor-general  to  lay  off 
in  addition  one  hundred  thousand  acres,  to  be  re- 


70  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

served  for  them  twelve  years.  De  GraiFenreid 
was  then  made  and  declared  a  landgrave. 

It  now  occurred  to  the  good  Queen  of  England 
that  this  would  be  a  favorable  opportunity  to  plant 
another  colony  of  her  adopted  German  Palatines 
in  her  transatlantic  dominions,  which  plan  was 
so  satisfactory  that  it  met  w^ith  favor  on  all  sides. 
On  the  one  hand,  the  Queen  was  thereby  relieving 
herself  of  the  support  of  these  poor  Germans,  for 
whom  she  had  appointed  commissioners  to  collect 
money,  and  thus  provide  speedily  for  their  perma- 
nent settlement,  besides  increasing  the  strength  of 
her  American  colonies.  On  the  other  hand,  these 
Germans  themselves,  trained  to  habits  of  industry 
and  economy,  could  but  rejoice  at  the  prospect  of 
so  soon  occupying  their  own  homes,  and  tilling 
their  own  fruitful  lands,  dependent  no  longer  upon 
the  charities  of  the  benevolent.  The  Lords-Pro- 
prietors could,  of  course,  make  no  objection,  as  it 
was  their  interest  to  have  Carolina  peopled  with 
frugal  and  industrious  citizens ;  and  De  GraiFen- 
reid and  Mitchell  were  glad  enough  to  obtain  ten- 
ants for  their  lands,  which  could  but  enhance  the 
value  thereof;  and,  inasmuch  as  the  Swiss  emi- 
grants w^ere  also  Germans,  speaking  the  same  lan- 
guage with  the  Palatines,  there  could  be  no  con- 
flicting interests  between  them ;  and  this  addition 
of  settlers  could  only  increase  the  safety  and  pros- 
perity of  the  nevv^  colony. 

A  negotiation,  therefore,  was  entered  into  be- 
tween the  Queen's  commissioners,  the  Swiss  leaders 
of  the  colony,  and  the  Lords-Proprietors.     Their 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  71 

articles  of  agreement  were  soon  written  and  signed, 
a  copy  of  which  may  be  seen  in  Hawks'  Historj^, 
from  which  we  learn  that  tlie  number  of  German 
Palatines  who  emigrated  with  De  Graffenreid  and 
Mitchell  amounted  to  six  hundred  and  fifty,  filling 
two  vessels;  and  that  the  most  liberal  provisions 
Avere  made  for  them  by  their  English  friends,  who 
bound  their  leaders  to  the  most  far-sighted  pledges 
in  the  contract  for  their  comfort  and  prosperity. 
Two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land  were  to  be 
given  them  for  five  years  without  remuneration, 
after  which  they  were  to  pay  an  annual  rent  of  two- 
pence per  acre;  besides,  implements  for  agriculture 
and  building  were  to  be  furnished  them  gratui- 
tously by  De  Graffenreid  and  Mitchell ;  to  be  also 
supplied  with  cattle,  hogs  and  sheep,  which  were 
not  to  be  paid  for  until  seven  years  after  receiving 
them:  and  for  twelve  months  after  their  arrival 
they  w^ere  to  be  supplied  with  necessary  food  for 
themselves  and  families,  which,  likewise,  was  not 
to  be  paid  for  until  the  end  of  the  second  year 
after  their  arrival.  ''The  commissioners,  on  their 
part,  agreed  to  give  .each  colonist,  young  and  old, 
twenty  shillings  sterling  in  clothes  and  monej', 
and  to  pay  De  Graffenreid  and  Mitchell  £5  10s. 
sterling  a  head  for  transportation." 

In  the  month  of  December,  1710,  these  Swiss 
and  Palatine  settlers,  with  their  leaders,  landed 
safely  at  the  confluence  of  the  N'euse  and  Trent 
Rivers  in  ITorth  Carolina,  where  they  built  a  town, 
which  they  named  New-Berne,  after  the  capital 
city  of  Switzerland,  of  which  De  Graffenreid  and 


72  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Mitcliell  and  tlie  majority  of  the  colonists  were 
natives.  The  troubles  of  a  long  and  tedious  voy- 
age across  the  Atlantic  were  now  over;  these  poor 
Germans  had  at  last  found  a  home,  and  here  could 
they  worship  God  according  to  the  doctrines  and 
usages  of  their  own  Protestant  religion,  thanking 
their  Almighty  Preserver  that  they  were  safely 
beyond  the  reach  of  all  Roman  Catholic  sovereigns. 

In  the  year  1711,  not  many  months  after  the  ar- 
rival of  the  De  Gratfenreid  colony,  a  dreadful  In- 
dian war  broke  out,  brought  on  by  tlie  agenc}^  of 
two  miserable  white  men.  Care}'  and  John  Porter, 
whose  turbulent  ambition  did  not  permit  them  to 
submit  to  the  authorized  and  lawful  government 
of  113'de ;  Carey,  having  determiiied  to  take  the 
rule  out  of  the  hands  of  Governor  Hyde,  and  to 
act  in  that  capacity  himself,  but  being  unsuccess- 
ful in  his  attempt,  resorted  with  his  friends  to  the 
base  and  fiendish  measure  of  stirring  up  the  Tus- 
carora  Indians  "to  cut  ofi'  all  the  inhabitants  of 
that  part  of  Carolina  that  adhered  to  Mr.  Hyde." 
For  this  purpose  Carey  dispatched  his  friend,  Jolin 
Porter,  to  those  Indians,  immbering  twelve  hun- 
dred fencible  men,  promising  them  great  rewards 
for  the  accomplishment  of  this  bloody  deed. 

The  white  settlers  had  all  this  while  lived  on 
the  most  friendly  terms  with  the  Indians,  and  if 
any  case  of  disturbance  among  individuals  occurred 
occasionally,  it  was  soon  amicably  settled  by  the 
law,  to  which  both  parties  had  recourse,  and  was 
equitable  enough  on  both  sides.  The  Indians  were 
frequently  employed  by  the  whites  as  domestics, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  73 

without  any  saspicioii  or  alarm,  they  having  in- 
gress and  egress  to  and  from  the  dwellings  of  the 
whites.  **  At  length  the  appointed  day  of  slaughter 
came.  Twelve  hundred  Tuscaroras,  separated  into 
numerous  small  divisions,  entered  on  their  secret 
march.  ISTo  outward  manifestations  of  hostility 
were  to  be  seen  ;  individuals  were  sent  among  the 
whites  to  reconnoitre,  and,  as  usual,  entered  the 
houses  of  their  doomed  victims  as  friends.  As 
night  approached,  large  numbers  appeared,  as  if 
seeking  provisions;  but  still  not  in  such  quantities 
did  they  show  themselves  as  to  beget  alarm. 

"At  the  dawn  of  day  they  impatiently  waited 
for  sunrise,  which  was  the  preconcerted  signal  for 
the  simultaneous  butchery.  As  soon  as  it  arrived, 
those  in  the  houses  of  the  whites,  and  scarce  a 
habitation  in  any  settlement  of  the  province  was 
at  that  moment  without  them,  gave  a  w^ioop, 
which  was  instantly  responded  to  by  their  com- 
panions lurking  in  the  adjacent  woods,  and  the 
frightful  w^ork  of  blood  began. 

"The  slaughter  was  indiscriminate,  and  the 
wonder  is  that  any  white  person  escaped.  Gray- 
haired  age,  and  vigorous  manhood,  and  childhood's 
helplessness,  all  fared  alike.  One  hundred  and 
thirty  victims  were  butchered  in  the  settlements 
on  Roanoke.  The  Swiss  and  Palatines  around  Neic- 
bern,  to  the  number  of  sixty  or  more,  were  murdered. 
The  poor  Huguenots  of  Bath  and  its  vicinity,  to 
what  number  we  know  not,  fell  under  the  knife 
or  the  tomahawk.  Happy  he  who  could  hide  him- 
self, or  escape  from  the  scene  of  horror.    But  soon 

7 


74  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  torch  was  applied  to  the  dwelling  and  store- 
house alike,  and  the  concealed  were  forced  from 
their  hiding-places. 

"The  incarnate  fiends,  with  loud  yells,  then 
marched  in  their  several  divisions  through  the 
forests  to  a  common  centre  previously  designated, 
and,  infuriated  now  hy  drunkenness,  staggered  on 
their  bloody  man-hunt  for  the  few  whites,  who  had 
escaped  the  desolation  of  their  habitations.  They 
formed  new  parties,  and  scoured  the  country  north 
of  Albemarle  as  far  westward  as  the  Chowan.  The 
carnage  lasted  for  three  days,  and  terminated  at 
last  from  the  disability  produced  in  the  savage  by 
the  combined  eft'ect  of  drunkenness  and  fatigue. 
The  few  colonists  who  had  escaped  slaughter,  avail- 
ing themselves  of  the  forced  suspension  of  whole- 
sale murder,  gathered  together  as  they  could  with 
their  arms,  and  stunned  by  the  blow  they  had  re- 
ceived, attempted  at  first  nothing  more  than  to 
collect  the  women  and  children,  and  guard  them 
night  and  day  until  time  would  enable  them  to 
concert  other  measures."  {Hayeks'  Hist,  of  iV.  C, 
vol.  ii,  pp.  530-532.) 

A  few  days  previous  to  this  general  massacre. 
Baron  De  Graffenreid  and  the  surveyor-general, 
Lawson,  with  a  negro  servant  belonging  to  the 
Baron,  ascended  the  river  E'euse  in  a  boat  for  the 
purpose  of  inspecting  the  lands  and  make  further 
explorations.  Kot  dreaming  of  Indian  hostilities 
they  expected  to  spend  the  first  night  at  an  Indian 
village  named  Corutra;  but  finding  that  several 
Indians  whom  they  had  met  were  armed,  they  did 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  75 

not  like  the  appearance  of  these  things,  and  de- 
termined to  sail  up  the  river;  but  as  they  made 
for  their  boat  they  were  seized  by  the  Indians,  and 
were  led  the  next  day  to  a  council  purposely  con- 
vened ;  but  might  have  been  liberated,  as  the  coun- 
cil was  dissolved  without  any  apparent  decision, 
had  not  an  Indian  who  understood  a  little  EnHish, 
and  listened  to  their  conversation,  told  a  falsehood 
against  them,  which  so  exasperated  the  others 
that  they  at  once  executed  the  negro  in  a  manner 
not  known,  and  poor  Lawson  was  inhumanly 
murdered  by  having  sharp  pine  splinters  inserted 
in  his  flesh,  which  were  then  set  on  lire.  De 
GrafFenreid  escaped  by  stating  he  was  King  of 
the  German  Palatines,  and  demanded  of  them  by 
what  authority  they  could  put  a  king  to  death, 
especially  as  he  had  committed  no  offence  towards 
them.  His  life  was  accordingly  spared,  though  he 
was  still  kept  in  custody. 

This  massacre,  as  a  necessary  consequence,  led 
to  a  war  with  the  Indians  in  N'orth  Carolina,  in 
which  the  Palatines  were  obliged  to  remain  neu- 
tral, as  De  Graffenreid  had  obtained  his  liberty 
by  a  treaty  of  neutrality  with  such  of  the  savages 
who  were  in  arms.  The  principal  terms  of  the 
treaty  were,  that  he  and  his  Palatines  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  Tuscarora  and  Core  Indians  on  the 
other,  should  preserve  friendship  towards  each 
other;  that  in  the  existing  war  with  the  English 
the  Palatines  should  remain  neutral,  and  that  the 
Baron  should  take  up  no  land  without  the  consent 
of  the  Indians. 


76  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

The  Baroii  adhered  strictly  to  the  terms  of  this 
treaty,  which  was,  of  course,  not  agreeable  to  the 
whites  ill  general,  but  w^iich  was,  nevertheless,  of 
great  advantage  to  the  province,  ^'as  it  aftbrded 
him  an  opportunity,  which  he  improved  at  the 
constant  risk  of  his  hfe,  to  discover  and  commu- 
nicate to  the  whites  all  the  Indians'  plans."  "  This 
neutrality  alone  probably  saved  the  remnant  of 
the  settlement  at  what  is  now  New^berne  from 
utter  extermination.  The  danger  of  discovery, 
however,  was  so  constant  and  so  great,  that  the 
Baron  would  gladly  have  removed  w4th  his  Pala- 
tines to  Virginia."  {Hawks,  vol.  ii,  p.  536.) 

Shortly  afterw^ards  the  settlers  received  aid  from 
South  Carolina  against  these  relentless  savages. 
Colonel  Barnwell,  with  a  detachment  of  the  mili- 
tia and  friendly  Yemassee  Indians,  was  sent  to 
attack  these  hostile  savages,  wdio  were  so  much 
reduced  by  the  loss  in  killed,  wounded,  and  pris- 
oners, that  they  caused  the  whites  but  little  trou- 
ble afterwards,  and  soon  removed  to  other  parts, 
when  the  colony  began  once  more  to  flourish 
through  the  benign  influence  of  peace. 

Baron  De  Graft'enreid  having  had  a  bitter  expe- 
rience of  Indian  treatment,  in  which  his  life  was 
in  constant  jeopardy,  resolved  to  return  to  his 
native  country,  Switzerland.  He,  how^ever,  left 
the  German  Palatines,  who  w-ere  already  suffi- 
ciently impoverished  by  the  Indian  war,  in  a  most 
destitute  condition,  by  withholding  their  titles  to 
their  lands,  and  contrary  to  the  stipulations  of  the 


m   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  77 

contract  made  between  himself  and  the  London 
commissioners  appointed  by  Queen  Anne. 

Williamson,  in  his  History  of  North  Carolina, 
states  that  these  poor  Germans  were  looked  upon 
by  the  Swiss  gentlemen  as  mere  objects  of  specu- 
lation, and  that  De  GrafFenreid  mortgaged  their 
lands  to  Colonel  Pollock  in  order  to  satisfy  a  debt 
which  he  had  incurred.  Dr.  Hawks,  however, 
frees  Louis  Mitchell  from  all  blame  in  this  matter, 
since  the  power  of  making  titles  was  not  vested 
in  him.  Whether  the  Baron  ever  returned  to 
America,  or  permitted  his  family  to  remain  here 
whilst  he  visited  his  native  country,  or  whether 
after  all  his  family  had  departed  from  America, 
some  again  sought  a  home  in  Carolina,  is  not  re- 
lated; but  it  is  well  known  that  his  descendants 
are  still  residing  in  different  portions  of  Carolina. 

The  last  resource  left  to  these  German  Palatines 
was  to  send  a  petition  to  the  council,  dated  Novem- 
ber 6th,  1714,  in  which  they  stated  that  they  were 
"disappointed  of  their  lands,"  &c.,  which  were  to 
be  provided  for  them,  and  petitioned  that  each 
farailj^  might  have  permission  to  take  up  four 
hundred  acres  of  land,  and  have  two  years'  time 
of  payment  allowed  them.  The  council  granted 
their  petition,  and  represented  their  case  to  the 
Lords-Proprietors,  from  whom  thej^  doubtless  re- 
ceived every  aid  and  encouragement  which  could 
be  afforded  them. 

It  would  require  very  patient  and  toilsome  re- 
search among  the  unpublished  archives  of  Europe 
in  order  to  answer  the  question  positively,  to  what 


78  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

religious  denominatioji  these  Stoiss  and  Palatinate  Ger- 
mans at  Newbcrne  professed  themselves.  All  the 
historians  of  I^ortli  Carolina  are  silent  on  this 
subject.  However,  let  ns  iiot  overlook  such  au- 
thorities which  are  within  our  reach  even  in  this 
country. 

The  present,  as  well  as  the  former  religious  con- 
dition of  Switzerland  is  well  known.  The  popu- 
lation is  divided  into  the  Eoman  Catholic,  the  Re- 
formed, and  the  Lutheran  Churches.  The  emi- 
grants from  that  country  to  Newberne  were 
doubtless  all  Protestants,  inasmuch  as  they  were 
brought  over  by  Protestant  leaders,  and  soon  after 
their  arrival  in  [N'orth  Carolina  connected  them- 
selves with  a  Protestant  Church.  The  majority  of 
them  were  most  likely  members  of  the  Reformed 
Church,  so  supposed,  because  the  Reformed  Church 
is  the  strongest  Protestant  denomination  in  Swit- 
zerland. 

The  German  Palatines  were  all  Protestants^  inas- 
much as,  on  account  of  this  "•  sin,''^  as  Dr.  Hawks 
ironically  expresses  it,  they  suffered  such  grievous 
persecutions,  and  were  forced  to  flee  from  their 
native  countr}^  to  seek  an  asylum  in  England. 
That  the  greater  number  of  Palatines  were  Lu- 
therans may  safely  be  presumed ;  from  the  exten- 
sive history  of  Lutheranism  by  Seckendorff,  we 
learn  that  Lutheranism  made  rapid  progress  in  the 
Palatinate  at  the  time  of  the  Reformation,  and 
that  it  had  greatly  prevailed  in  that  countrj^  dur- 
ing the  seventeenth  centur}^  which  was  the  time 
immediately   preceding   the    departure   of    these 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  79 

settlers  from  their  native  coiintrj.  SeckendorfF 
wrote  bis  history  but  twenty-four  years  previous 
to  the  last  Protestant  exodus  from  the  Palatinate. 

In  connection  with  this  fact  we  have  the  addi- 
tional proof,  that  the  most  of  those  twelve  thousand 
Palatine  Germans,  who  fled  to  England  to  enjoy 
Queen  Anne's  protection,  and  who  settled  in  ITew 
York  and  other  provinces,  were  members  of  the 
Lutheran  Church,  and  it  is  but  reasonable  to  con- 
clude that  their  brethren  in  IN^orth  Carolina  were 
of  the  same  faith  with  themselves. 

The  story  of  their  religion  in  their  newly  adopted 
country  is  soon  told,  which  may  be  gatliered  from 
the  correspondence  between  De  Graflenreid  and 
the  Bishop  of  London,  published  in  Hawks'  His- 
tory, and  reads  as  follows: 

"My  Good  and  Excellent  Lord: 

"The  misfortune  I  met  with  in  all  heing  unexpect- 
edly hurried  away  from  London  to  New  Castle  to 
meet  my  Swissers,  in  order  to  transport  them  into 
North  Carolina  after  those  six  hundred  and  fifty 
Palatines  I  had  sent  before,  which  unlooked-for  arri- 
val of  them  so  far  north,  gave  me  notice  to  i^ny  my 
duty  to  your  lordship,  whom  then,  I  was  told,  was 
neither  in  London  nor  at  Ftilham.  I  can  assure  your 
lordship  no  person  of  any  rank  is  unacquainted  with 
that  great  and  good  character  your  lordship  has  and 
merits.  So  I  can  make  no  excuse  on  that  behalf,  but 
heartily  beg  pardon,  and  at  the  same  time  humbly 
request  your  lordship  to  accept  of  me  and  my  people, 
and  receive  us  into  your  Church  under  your  lordship/s 
patronage,  and  we  shall  esteem  ourselves  happy  sons 


80  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  a  better  stock,  and,  I  hope,  shall  always  behave 
ourselves  as  becomes  members  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, and  dutiful  children  of  so  pious  and  indulgent  a 
father  as  your  lordship  is  to  all  under  your  care,  in 
all  obedience.  Craving  your  lordship's  blessing  to  me 
and  my  countrymen  here,  I  make  bold  to  subscribe, 
"My  lord,  yours,  &c., 

"C.  DE  Graffenreid." 

The  answer  of  the  Bishop  of  London  to  this 
epistle  is  contained  in  a  letter  to  the  Secretary,  an 
extract  of  which  is  furnished  us  by  Dr.  Hawks. 

"FuLHAM,  12tli  January,  1711-12. 
''Sir: 

*'As  to  the  letter  of  Baron  Graffenreid,  whereby 
you  may  perceive  that  they  are  all  ready  to  conform 
to  the  Church  of  England :  if  the  Society  will  be 
pleased  to  allow  a  stipend  for  a  chaplain  to  read 
Common  Prayers  in  High  Dutch  (German),  I  will 
endeavor  to  provide  one  so  soon  as  I  have  their  reso- 
lution, which  I  would  willingly  hear  so  soon  as  pos- 
sible, that  I  may  send  him  over  with  Mr.  Eainsford. 

"I  am,  sir,  yours,  &c., 

"  H.  London.'' 

D  is  presumed  that  the  bishop  was  successful 
in  sending  to  this  German  and  Swiss  colony  a 
clergyman  of  the  English  Church,  who  could 
minister  to  them  in  their  native  language,  and 
thus  these  German  Protestants  glided  gradually 
into  the  Episcopal  Church.  They  may  have  been 
induced  to  take  this  step  from  the  following  mo- 
tives :  they  had  no  pastor  of  their  own  faith,  and 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  81 

thus  were  destitute  of  the  means  of  grace;  they 
had  been  kindly  treated  bj^  tlie  English  sovereign 
and  her  people,  and  a  feeling  of  gratitude  for 
their  benefactorsjed  them  to  think  very  favorably 
of  the  religious  faith  of  the  English  people;  and 
furthermore,  the  Church  of  England  was  the 
established  religion  in  the  Carolinas. 

Some  of  the  names  of  these  Germans  are  still 
on  record;  in  the  list  of  jurymen,  in  Craven  pre- 
cinct, dated  1723,  we  find,  among  others,  the  follow- 
ing undoubted  German  names:  Christian  Eslar, 
Christian  Slaver,  John  Lecher  Miller,  Jacob  Miller, 
Matthew  Kasenober,  John  Dipp,  John  Simons, 
Henry  Perk,  Henry  Perlerbo,  John  Wixedell, 
Michael  Resabel,  and  Martin  Franke.  "An  old 
document,  signed  by  the  Palatines,"  says  Dr. 
Hawks,  "gives  us  the  following  German  names, 
yet  familiar  in  Craven  and  the  adjacent  counties: 
Eslar  (now  Isler),  Grum  (Croom),  Rennege,  Mohr 
(Moore),  Eibach  (Hypock),  Morris,"  and  a  number 
of  others.  "Of  the  Swiss,  we  find  Coxdaille  (Cog- 
dell),  from  whom,  on  the  maternal  side,  descend 
the  J^orth  Carolina  branch  of  the  families  of  Stanly 
and  Badger." 

Section  8.    The  German  settlers  in  Charleston^  S.  C. 

We  will  now  direct  our  attention  to  one  more 
German  settlement  along  the  seacoast,  whose 
history  must  not  be  omitted,  and  then  we  will 
turn  our  faces  inland.  James  Island,  S.  C,  oppo- 
site   Charleston,    has   had    our   attention ;    l!^ew- 


82  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

berne,  ^.  C,  came  next;  no  settlement  of  any 
note  was  as  jet  establislied  along  the  Cape  Fear 
River,  and  Wilmington,  N.  C,  had  no  existence 
at  that  early  date;  but  Charleston,  the  principal 
seaport  of  the  Carolinas,  was  a  flourishing  town, 
and  commanded  a  considerable  share  of  the  emi- 
gration to  America;  and  the  Germans,  who  sought 
and  found  a  habitation  in  so  many  parts  of  Amer- 
ica, during  the  commencement  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  also  found  a  home  in  this  locality.  We 
have  a  few  facts  upon  Avhich  we  can  build  a  very 
safe  conclusion  as  to  the  probable  date  of  the  ar- 
rival of  German  settlers  in  Charleston,  but  no 
direct  testimony  has  as  yet  been  discovered,  in 
which  the  year  and  day  of  their  landing  is  men- 
tioned. 

Queen  Anne  of  England  caused  lands  to  be  do- 
nated in  the  Province  of  South  Carolina  to  the 
German  refugees  from  the  Palatinate,  as  Dr.  Haze- 
lius  informs  us  in  his  History,  p.  25 ;  this  must 
have  been  done  before  the  31st  of  July,  1714, 
when  her  majesty  departed  this  life.  And  we  ask, 
would  this  grant  have  been  made  if  there  were 
no  German  Palatines  remaining  in  her  realm,  or 
expected  soon  to  arrive,  for  whom  this  location 
was  provided  ?  Or,  is  it  likely  that  none  of  these 
Palatine  Germans  came  to  the  port  of  Charles- 
ton, when  they  were  landed  at  the  seaports  of 
other  provinces  in  America,  especially  as  an  abun- 
dance of  land  in  the  Province  of  South  Carolina 
was  provided  for  them,  and  in  order  to  reach  the 
locality  of  that  grant  they  had  to  be  landed  in 


IN   NOKTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  83 

Charleston,  even  thoug'h  tliej  did  not  occupy,  at 
that  time,  the  lands  of  that  grant,  as  we  are  in- 
formed by  Dr.  Hazelius? 

The  colony  of  the  pious  Salzbnrgers,  with  their 
pastors,  Bolzius  and  Gronau,  landed  first  at  Char- 
leston in  the  early  part  of  March,  1734,  before 
their  arrival  at  Ebenezer,  Georgia;  and  in  Rev. 
Bolzius'  journal,  found  in  Force's  Collection  of 
Historical  Tracts,  we  have  the  following  state- 
ment, dated  "  Charleston,  March  7th,  1734 :"  "  We 
found  here  some  Germans,  who  were  very  glad 
of  our  arrival,  and  will  come  to  us,  in  order  to 
receive  the  sacrament." 

Next  comes  the  statement  of  Strobel's  History 
of  the  Salzbnrgers,  p.  59  :  "  Remaining  in  Charles- 
ton a  few  days,  the  Salzburgers  re-embarked  on 
the  9th  day  of  March." 

In  Urlsperger's  I^achrichten,  Rev.  Bolzius  gives 
us  a  lengthy  account  of  his  visit  to  Charleston,  in 
company  with  Baron  Yon  Reck,  in  the  following 
May;  he  arrived  there  on  the  23d  of  May,  1734, 
and  left  again  for  his  home  in  Ebenezer,  May  26th. 
Here  we  have  the  followino^  record:  ^' A  certain 
glazier  and  his  wife,  who  are  from  the  Palatinate, 
went  with  us  to  the  Holy  Supper,  and  manifested 
great  attention  and  earnestness;  their  love  for  the 
word  of  God  and  the  holy  sacraments  is  so  great, 
that  they  are  determined  to  remain  no  longer  in 
Charleston,  and  have  concluded  to  remove  to 
Ebenezer  as  soon  as  possible.  They  have  many 
children,  which  wnll  enlarge    our   small    school. 


84  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Both  these  parents  will  be  very  useful  to  us  in  our 
house  arrangements." 

The  above  records  settle  the  matter  conclu- 
sively, that  there  loere  Germans  residing  in  Char- 
leston previous  to  the  early  part  of  1734;  that 
they  were  then  sufficiently  numerous  to  have  the 
word  of  God  preached  to  them,  and  to  enjoy  a 
communion  season ;  and  that  some  of  them  were 
from  the  Palatinate. 

But  how  far  back  we  are  to  date  their  arrival 
in  Charleston  is  uncertain ;  they  could  not  have 
settled  there  before  1708,  as  the  exodus  of  Palat- 
inate refugees  into  England  did  not  take  place 
until  that  time,  and  after  the  Queen's  proclama- 
tion, inviting  them  to  the  hospitalities  of  her 
realm;  and  t\\Qj  certainly  w^ere  living  there  in 
1734. 

These  Germans  did  not  occupy  the  lands  granted 
them  along  the  Congaree  River,  and  for  a  very 
good  reason ;  those  lands  w^ere  located  too  far  in- 
land for  that  period  of  time,  being  about  one  hun- 
dred miles  remote  from  Charleston ;  that  location 
would  have  been  an  unsafe  dwelling-place  at  the 
time,  for  even  Orangeburg  County  was  not  much 
settled  until  1735,  and  that  locality  is  much  nearer 
the  seaboard  than  the  Saxe-Gotha  grant  on  the 
Congaree  River.  The  presumption  then  is,  that 
when  the  Palatine  Germans  arrived  at  Charleston, 
they  remained  there  and  in  the  vicinit3\ 

A  number  of  Germans  having  thus  located  them- 
selves in  Charleston,  and  their  w^ants  having  be- 
come known  to  the  pastors  of  the  Salzburg  colony 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  85 

as  they  passed  through  to  Ebenezer,  these  holy 
men  resolved  to  do  something  for  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  their  beloved  brethren  of  the  same  faith 
in  this  town.  Accordingly,  on  the  23d  of  May, 
1734,  Rev.  Bolzius  accompanied  Baron  Von  Eeck, 
Lord  Commissary  of  the  Ebenezer  colony,  as  far 
as  Charleston,  on  his  return  to  Europe,  where  they 
remained  a  few  days;  and  from  Rev.  Bolzius' 
journal  we  quote  the  following  account  of  the  first 
communion  administered  there  amons^  the  Ger- 
mans. 

"May  '23^  1734.— Wq  were  informed  in  Savannah 
where  w^e  could  best  lodge  in  Charleston,  and  we 
likewise  found  very  friendly  people  in  the  hotel, 
with  many  accommodations  there  for  reasonable 
charges.  Several  Germans  of  our  Evangelical 
Confession  mentioned  to  me  and  our  Commissary 
their  desire  to  commune  at  the  Lord's  table,  for 
which  they  have  had  a  great  longing  for  a  long 
time.  I  therefore  determined  to  remain  here  over 
Sunday,  and  prepare  the  people  from  the  word  of 
God  for  this  solemn  exercise. 

'•'May  25. — Many  persons  of  distinction  in  this 
place  showed  us  great  attention,  and  constrained 
us  to  dine  and  sup  with  them,  which  we  would 
rather  decline,  as  in  so  doing  we  would  be  sub- 
jected to  many  dissipations  of  mind  and  heart. 
To-day  those  persons  came  to  me,  who  had  noti- 
fied their  intention  to  commune,  in  order  that  I 
might  hold  some  scriptural  conversation  with 
them ;  as  far  as  time  and  opportunity  permitted, 
I  discoursed  wdth  them  on  the  importance  and 


86  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

benefit  of  the  Holy  Supper,  as  well  as  the  require- 
ments of  true  Christianity.  We  deemed  it  advis- 
able that,  as  those  persons  would  hear  us  but  once 
or  twice,  to  press  home  upon  their  hearts  the  most 
needful  truths,  and  to  instil  upon  their  memory 
Hhe  order  of  salvation,'  together  with  several  im- 
portant Scripture  passages. 

'■'May  26. — This  day  a  fine  opportunity  presented 
itself  for  me  to  return,  and  arrive  at  Ebenezer  in 
a  few  days,  consequently,  I  was  compelled  to  leave 
Charleston  to-day.  I  therefore  assembled  the  com- 
municants early,  at  5  a.m.,  when  we  all  sang  sev- 
eral hymns,  and  I  discoursed  upon  some  of  the 
important  and  practical  truths  from  the  gospel  of 
to-day.  After  sermon  we  all  fell  upon  our  knees, 
and  the  Lord  Commissary  prayed  very  fervently 
to  God  in  the  name  of  the  whole  congregation. 
After  the  absolution  and  the  celebration  of  the 
Lord's  Supper,  I  prepared  myself  for  the  home- 
ward journey.  It  vras  very  remarkable  to  me, 
that  a  certain  German  shoemaker  had  also  noti- 
fied himself  as  being  desirous  to  commune,  but  he 
came  to  my  room  after  the  services  were  ended, 
because,  as  he  remarked,  the  house  where  I  lodged 
had  been  locked.  Afterwards  I  learned  that  this 
very  man  was  a  drinking  character,  who  associ- 
ated himself  with  low  company,  but  which  I  could 
neither  discover  in  his  outward  appearance,  nor 
from  bis  conversation,  and  had  presumed  something 
good  of  him  in  my  short  intercourse  with  him;  I 
was,  therefore,  rejoiced  that  he  was  prevented 
from  comino^  to  the  table  of  the  Lord.     A  certain 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  87 

glazier  and  his  wife,  who  are  from  the  Palatinate, 
went  with  us  to  the  Holy  Supper,  and  manifested 
great  attention  and  earnestness;  their  love  for  the 
word  of  God  and  the  holy  sacraments  is  so  great 
that  they  are  determined  to  remain  no  longer  in 
Charleston,  and  have  concluded  to  remove  to 
Ebenezer  as  soon  as  possible.  They  have  many 
children,  which  will  enlarge  our  small  school. 
Both  these  persons  will  be  very  useful  to  us  in  our 
house  arrangements." 

In  1742  the  Eev.  Henry  Melchior  Muhlenberg, 
D.D.,  visited  Charleston ;  he  had  been  sent  from 
the  Mission  Society  of  Halle,  in  Germany,  to  labor 
in  Pennsylvania,  but  it  was  made  his  duty  first  to 
visit  the  colony  at  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  and  landed 
at  Charleston  on  21st  of  September,  where  he  re- 
mained but  three  days,  and  then  proceeded  to 
Ebenezer. 

Kev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  did  not  remain  long  with 
the  pastors  of  the  Salzburg  colony,  and,  as  soon  as 
he  had  somewhat  refreshed  and  strengthened  him- 
self from  the  eflects  of  his  perilous  and  wearisome 
voyage  to  America,  he  returned  to  Charleston  in 
company  with  Rev.  Bolzius,  who  had  intended  to 
accompany  him  to  Philadelphia,  and  there  induct 
him  into  his  office;  however,  as  no  vessel  was  ex- 
pected to  sail  from  Charleston  to  Philadelpha  for 
several  months,  Rev.  Bolzius,  after  having  remained 
a  few  days,  returned  to  his  own  field  of  labor  in 
Ebenezer. 

Rev.  Muhlenberg  was  a  man  of  no  idle  habits, 
and,  from  the  time  of  this,  his  second  arrival  in 


88  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Charleston,  October  20tli,  1742,  whilst  waiting  for 
an  opportunity  to  reach  his  destined  field  of  labor, 
to  ITovember  12th  of  the  same  year,  when  he  set 
sail  in  a  very  small  and  frail  vessel  for  Philadel- 
phia, he  employed  himself  in  laboring  for  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  the  Germans  in  Charleston. 
During  his  stay  he  made  his  home  in  the  family 
of  a  painter,  named  Theus,  the  brother  of  a  Ger- 
man Reformed  minister,  who  labored  in  Saxe- 
Gotha,  South  Carolina,  along  the  Congaree  River. 
On  Sundays  Dr.  Muhlenberg  preached  to  several 
German  families  that  had  congregated  themselves 
in  Mr.  Theus'  house,  and  during  the  other  days 
of  the  week  he  catechized  their  children,  who  were 
thus  instructed  in  all  the  principles  of  the  Christian 
religion,  according  to  this  excellent  and  ancient 
custom. 

Eleven  ^^ears  later,  A.D.  1753,  the  Revs.  Chris- 
tian Rabenhorst  and  M.  Gerock,  A.M.,  arrived  at 
Charleston,  upon  the  same  vessel,  from  Germany, 
on  their  way  to  their  respective  fields  of  labor; 
the  former  having  been  appointed  by  the  Society 
for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge  in  Foreign 
Parts  as  the  third  pastor  at  Ebenezer,  and  the 
latter,  as  the  Lutheran  pastor  in  Lancaster,  Penna. ; 
both  of  these  ministers  labored  a  short  time  in 
Charleston  whilst  they  tarried  there. 

Section  9.    The  Swiss  colony  at  Puryshurg^  S.  C, 
A.D.  1732. 

In  Beaufort  County,  S.  C,  some  thirty  miles 
inland  from  the  seacoast,  and  situated  on  the  east 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  89 

bank  of  the  Savannah  River,  there  was  once  a 
ilonrishing  German  town  and  colonj^,  named 
Pmysburg.  The  inhabitants  came  from  Switzer- 
land, and  nnder  circumstances  verj-  simihir  to 
those  of  the  settlers  of  ISTewberne,  N.  C. ;  for, 
what  De  Graffenreid  and  Mitchell  were  to  the 
colony  on  the  confluence  of  the  Keuse  and  Trent 
Rivers,  that  Purry,  Richard,  Meuron,  and  Ray- 
mond were  to  the  Swiss  settlers  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Savannah  River. 

In  the  year  1731,  "John  Peter  Purry,  of  iTeuf- 
chatel,  in  Switzerland,  formerly  a  Director-Gen- 
eral of  the  French  East-India  Compatiy,  having 
formed  the  design  of  leaving  his  native  country, 
paid  a  visit  to  Carolina  in  order  to  inform  himself 
of  the  circumstances  and  situation  of  that  province. 
After  viewing  the  lands,"  and  satisfying  his  own 
mind,  by  means  of  personal  observation,  of  the 
fertility  of  the  soil,  eligibility  as  to  climate  and 
situation  for  a  settlement  of  his  countrymen,  "he 
returned  to  Britain.  The  government  there  en- 
tered into  a  contract  with  him,  and  ac^reed  to  o-ive 

'CD  C? 

him  lands,  and  four  hundred  pounds  sterling  for 
every  hundred  effective  men  he  could  transport 
from  Switzerland  to  Carolina."  [Mills^  Statistics  of 
South  Carolma^  page  369.) 

Whilst  Mr.  Purry  was  in  Charleston,  he  drew  up 
the  following  flattering  account  of  the  soil  and  cli- 
mate of  South  Carolina,  and  of  the  excellency  and 
freedom  of  the  provincial  government,  and  on  his 
return  to  Switzerland  published  it  among  the 
people.     It  reads  as  follows  : 


90  THE   LUTHERAN   CHUECH 


"Proposals  by  Mr.  Peter  Purrt,  of  Neufchatel,  for  the 
encouragement  of  such  swiss  protestants  as  should 
agree  to  accompany  him  to  carolina,  to  settle  a 
new  colony. 

"There  are  only  two  methods,  viz.:  one  for 
persons  to  go  as  servants,  the  other  to  settle  on 
their  own  account. 

"  1.  Those  who  are  desirous  to  go  as  servants 
must  be  carpenters,  vine-planters,  husbandmen,  or 
good  laborers. 

''  2.  They  must  be  such  as  are  not  very  poor, 
but  in  a  condition  to  carry  with  them  what  is  suf- 
ficient to  support  their  common  necessity. 

"  3.  They  must  have  at  least  three  or  four  good 
shirts,  and  a  suit  of  clothes  each. 

"4.  They  are  to  have  each  for  their  wages  one 
hundred  livres  yearl}^,  which  make  fifty  crowns  of 
the  money  of  Xeufchatel,  in  Switzerland,  but  their 
w^ages  are  not  to  commence  till  the  daj-  of  their 
arrival  in  Carolina. 

<'5.  Expert  carpenters  shall  have  suitable  en- 
couragement. 

"6.  The  time  of  their  contract  shall  be  three 
years,  reckoning  from  the  day  of  their  arrival  in 
that  country. 

"  7.  They  shall  be  supplied  in  part  of  their 
wages  with  money  to  come  from  Switzerland,  till 
they  embark  for  Carolina. 

"  8.  Their  wages  shall  be  paid  them  regularly 
at  the  end  of  ever}^  year ;  for  security  whereof  they 
shall  have  the  fruits  of  their  labor,  and  generally 


IN   XORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  91 

all  that  can  be  procured  for  them,  whether  mova- 
bles or  immovables. 

"  9.  Victuals  and  lodgings  from  the  day  of  their 
embarkation  shall  not  be  put  to  their  account,  nor 
their  passage  by  sea. 

"10.  They  shall  have  what  money  they  w^ant 
advanced  during  the  term  of  their  service  in  part 
of  their  w^ages  to  buy  linen,  clothes,  and  all  other 
necessaries. 

'^  11.  If  they  happen  to  fall  sick,  they  shall  be 
lodged  and  nourished  gratis,  but  their  wages  shall 
not  go  on  during  their  illness,  or  that  they  are  not 
able  to  work. 

"  12.  They  shall  serve,  after  recovery,  the  time 
they  had  lost  during  their  sickness. 

"13.  What  goes  to  pay  physicians  or  surgeons 
shall  be  put  to  their  account. 

"As  to  those  wdio  go  to  settle  on  their  own  ac- 
count, they  must  have  at  least  fifty  crowns  each, 
because  their  passage  by  sea  and  victuals  will  cost 
them  twenty  to  twenty -five  crowns,  and  the  rest 
of  the  money  shall  go  to  procure  divers  things 
which  will  be  absolutely  necessary  for  the  vo^-age." 
[CarroWs  Collections^  vol.  iij  pp.  121,  et  seq.) 

Here  follows  also,  from  the  same  author : 
"A  Description   of  the  Province   of  South  Carolina. 


"The  Kinor  of  Great  Britain  havino^  about  three 
years  ago  purchased  this  province  of  the  Lords- 
Proprietors   thereof,  has   since  studied   to  make 


92  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

agriculture,  commerce,  and  navigation  flourish  in 
it.  His  Majesty  immediately  nominated  Colonel 
Johnson,  a  worthy  gentleman,  to  be  Governor 
thereof;  who,  at  his  departure  for  Carolina,  re- 
ceived divers  orders  and  instructions,  &c.  His 
Majesty  further  grants  to  every  European  servant, 
whether  man  or  woman,  lifty  acres  of  land  free  of 
all  rents  for  ten  3^ears,  which  shall  he  distributed 
to  them  after  having  served  their  master  for  the 
time  agreed  on. 

"In  consequence  of  these  instructions,  Mr.  Purry 
was  permitted  to  go  and  choose  on  the  borders  of 
the  river  Savannali  land  proper  to  build  the  town 
of  Purysburg  upon;  and  having  found  it  such  as 
he  wished,  the  government  made  him  a  grant 
thereof  under  the  great  seal  of  the  Province,  dated 
1st  September,  1731,  and  at  the  same  time  pub- 
lished throughout  the  whole  country  a  prohibition 
to  all  sorts  of  persons  to  go  and  settle  on  the  said 
land,  which  is  already  called  the  Swiss  Quarter. 

"In  order  to  facilitate  the  execution  of  this 
undertaking  in  the  best  manner,  the  Assembly 
granted  to  the  said  Mr.  Purry  four  hundred  pounds 
sterling,  and  provisions  sufficient  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  three  hundred  persons  for  one  year,  pro- 
vided they  be  all  persons  of  good  repute  and  Swiss 
Protestants,  and  that  they  come  to  Carolina  within 
the  space  of  two  years. 

"  The  river  Savannah  is  one  of  the  finest  in  all 
Carolina,  the  water  good,  and  stored  with  excellent 
fish.     It  is  about  the  largeness  of  the  Rhine,  and 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  93 

there  are  two  forts  already  built  upon  it,  which 
the  Indians  have  never  dared  to  attack. 

"The  town  of  Purysburg  will  be  situated  thirty 
miles  from  the  sea,  and  about  seven  miles  from 
the  highest  tide.  The  land  about  it  is  a  niost  de- 
lightful plain,  and  the  greatest  part  very  good 
soil,  especially  for  pasturage,  and  the  rest  proper 
enough  for  some  productions.  It  was  formerly 
called  the  great  Yemassee  Port,  and  is  esteemed 
by  the  inhabitants  of  the  Province  the  best  place 
in  all  Carolina,  although  never  yet  possessed  but 
by  the  Indians,  who  were  driven  from  thence  by 
the  English  several  years  ago,  and  have  never 
dared  to  return  thither.  All  sorts  of  trees  and 
plants  will  grow  there  as  well  as  can  be  wished, 
particularly  vines,  wheat,  barley,  oats,  pease,  beans, 
hemp,  flax,  cotton,  tobacco,  indigo,  olives,  orange 
trees,  and  citron  trees,  as  also  white  mulberry 
trees  for  feeding  of  silk-worms. 

"The  lands  will  not  be  difficult  to  clear,  because 
there  is  neither  stones  nor  brambles,  but  only 
great  trees,  which  do  not  grow  very  thick,  so  that 
more  land  may  be  cleared  there  in  one  week  than 
could  be  done  in  Switzerland  in  a  month.  The 
custom  of  the  country  is,  that  after  having  cut 
down  these  great  trees,  they  leave  the  stumps  for 
four  or  live  years  to  rot,  and  afterwards  easily  root 
them  up  in  order  to  manure  the  land." 

The  remainder  of  Mr.  Purry's  description  of 
South  Carolina  is  of  so  general  a  character  that  it 
would  add  nothing  to  the  interest  of  this  sketch. 
He  gave  such  a  flattering  account  of  the  country 


94  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

that  many  Switzers  were  induced  to  emigrate  with 
him  to  Carolina.  This  document  published  in 
pamphlet  form  was  then  signed  by  four  gentle- 
men, and  extensively  distributed.  The  conclusion 
reads  as  follows : 

''We,  whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed, 
do  attest  that  all  which  is  contained  in  this  account 
of  South  Carolina  is  the  real  truth,  having  been 
eye-witnesses  of  the  most  part  of  the  particulars 
therein  mentioned. 

"Done  at  Charlestown  the  23d  of  September, 

1731. 

"John  Peter  Purry,  of ]S"eufchdtel, 

"James  Richard,  of  Geneva, 
"Abraham  Meuron,  of  St,  Sulpy,  in  the 

county  of  [N'eufchatel, 
"Henry  EaYxMOND,  of  St.  Sulpy." 

After  Mr.  Purry's  return  to  Switzerland,  and  his 
proposals  having  become  generally  known,  the 
people  flocked  to  him  without  delay,  and  he  soon 
made  every  preparation  necessary  for  the  safety 
and  comfort  of  the  colonists,  who  placed  themselves 
under  his  charge.  Mills,  in  his  Statistics  of  South 
Carolina,  page  369,  states :  "  Immediately  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy  Switzers  agreed  to  follow  him, 
to  be  transported  to  the  fertile  and  delightful  prov- 
ince, as  he  described  it,"  so  that  in  a  few  months 
they  were  ready  to  enter  upon  their  long  voyage, 
w^iich  was  doubtless  a  prosperous  one;  for  they 
left  England  about  the  1st  of  August,  1732,  and 
arrived  in  Charleston  during  the  following  Novem- 
ber. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  95 

The  Governor  of  South  Carolina,  agreeably  to 
instructions,  allowed  thera  forty  thousand  acres  of 
land  for  their  settlement,  which  was  surv^eyed  and 
located  on  the  east  side  of  the  Savannah  River, 
w^here  a  town  was  laid  out  for  their  accommoda- 
tion, and  named  Purysburg,  after  the  founder  of 
the  colony  and  the  promoter  of  its  settlement.  The 
interest  in  favor  of  this  new  enterprise  continued 
in  Switzerland  for  some  time.  Not  long  after- 
wards some  two  hundred  more  settlers  were  added 
to  the  new  colon^^,  who  likewise  arrived  safely  in 
Carolina. 

It  was  the  intention  of  the  Swiss  settlers,  in  con- 
nection with  the  other  more  necessary  articles  of 
husbandry,  to  plant  the  vine,  and  also  to  give  their 
attention  to  the  rearing  and  manufacturing  of  silk, 
for  which  this  Province  appeared  to  be  admirably 
adapted,  as  the  climate  was  warm,  and  the  soil 
very  productive  for  the  growing  of  a  variety  of 
grapes,  and  the  planting  of  the  white  mulberry 
tree,  on  which  the  tender  silk-worm  feeds.  The 
Governor  and  Council  likewise  were  happy  in  the 
acquisition  of  such  a  force,  who,  by  their  knowl- 
edge of  these  various  branches  of  industry,  gave 
promise  of  great  service  to  the  Province.  "  They 
allotted  to  each  of  them  a  separate  tract  of  land, 
and  gave  every  encouragement  in  their  power  to 
the  people.  The  Swiss  emigrants  began  their 
labors  of  raising  silk  and  planting  the  vine  with 
uncommon  zeal  and  energy,  highly  elevated  with 
the  idea  of  possessing  landed  estates."  {Hills,  p 
370.) 


96  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Rev.  Bolziiis  visited  Purysburg  on  bis  way  to 
Cliarlestoii,  in  May,  1734,  not  two  years  after  its 
settlement,  and  speaks  bigbly  of  it  in  bis  journal 
as  follows:  "This  town  is  built  upon  tbe  more 
elevated  banks  of  tbe  river,  and,  as  many  w^ealtby 
people  reside  bere,  it  is  boped  tbat  in  a  sbort  time 
it  will  become  a  considerable  town.  Tbe  inbabi- 
tants  labor  industriously  in  tbeir  gardens  and 
fields,  and  persons  can  already  procure  bere  fresb 
meats,  eggs,  garden  vegetables,  even  more  tban  in 
Savannab.  We  were  sbown  all  kindness,  and  sev- 
eral of  tbe  inbabitants  besougbt  us  to  return  soon 
again,  and  administer  tbe  communion." 

Tbe  majority  of  tbese  settlers  were,  doubtless, 
members  of  the  Reformed  Church  of  Switzerland 
before  tbey  came  to  America;  they  were  all  Prot- 
estants, as  this  faitb  was  made  one  of  tbe  condi- 
tions for  tbeir  becoming  settlers  of  this  colony; 
a  few  families  were  connected  with  tbe  Lutheran 
Cburcb,  as  Rev.  Bolzius'  journal  informs  us.  The 
colony  brought  tbeir  own  pastor  with  them,  tbe 
Rev.  Joseph  Blignion,  "a  Swiss  minister,"  who, 
when  be  arrived  in  England,  on  bis  wa}'  to  Caro- 
lina, was  induced  to  have  Episcopal  ordination  laid 
upon  him  by  tbe  Rev.  Dr.  Clagett,  Bishop  of  St. 
David's.  His  motives  were  doubtless  pure,  think- 
ino^  that  the  Cburcb  of  Eno^land  was  tbe  established 
religion  in  Carolina,  and  tbat  be  might  accomplisb 
as  mucb  good,  with  less  opposition,  "as  a  stranger 
in  a  strange  land,"  if  be  would  conform  to  tbe 
rules  and  worship  of  tbat  Church.  Wbetber  the 
majority  of  tbe  Swiss  Protestants  coincided  witb 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  97 

liim  is  not  stated;  probably  many  of  them  did  so, 
but  Others  connected  themselves  with  the  Lutheran 
Church  at  Ebenezer,  Georgia.  Rev.  Mr.  Bliguion 
did  not  remain  a  great  while  among  his  country- 
men at  Purjsburg;  about  the  commencement  of 
the  year  1735  he  removed  to  St.  James,  San  tee. 

"In  1744  the  Rev.  Henry  Chiffelle  arrived  in  the 
Province  as  the  first  missionary  from  ^  The  Society 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts* 
to  this  parish.  He  was  a  native  of  Switzerland, 
and  was  ordained,"  as  a  minister  of  the  Church 
of  England,  "by  Dr.  Gibson,  Bishop  of  London, 
July  14th  and  21st,  1734."  '  During  his  time  of 
service  in  this  charge,  in  February,  1746,  this  set- 
tlement was  established  as  a  separate  parish  by  an 
act  of  the  legislature,  under  the  name  and  title  of 
St.  Peter's  Parish.  "  The  Act  directed  that  the 
Church  or  Chapel,  and  the  dwelling-house  wherein 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Chiffelle  had  preached  and  dwelt, 
should  be  the  Parish  Church  and  Parsonage-house 
of  St.  Peter's  Parish.  The  Rector  or  minister  was 
to  be  elected  as  in  otlier  parishes,  and  to  receive 
a  salary  of  £100.  Proc.  money.  Mr.  Chiffelle  con- 
tinued in  this  mission  until  his  death  in  1758,  and 
was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Abraham  Imer,  who 
arrived  in  the  Province  in  1760,  and  died  in  1766." 
[Dalcho^s  History  of  the  Prot.  Epis.  Church  in  South 
Carolina,  pp.  385  and  386.) 

In  regard  to  the  Lutheran  element  of  this  colony, 
we  may  add,  that  they  appear  to  have  always  had 
a  warm  attachment  to  their  own  faith.  Their  con- 
tiguity to  their  Lutheran  brethren  of  the  Ebenezer 

9 


98  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

colony  on  tlie  otlier  side  of  the  Savannah  River, 
as  well  as  the  zeal  of  the  Salzburg  pastors,  who 
occasionally  visited  them,  had  the  effect  of  keeping 
up  the  interest  in  their  own  Church  for  a  \oug 
time.  The  following  extract  from  the  journal  of 
Rev.  Bolzius,  as  found  in  Force's  Collection  of 
Historical  Tracts,  abundantly  proves  this :  "  March 
19th,  Mr.  Oglethorpe,  going  to  Purysburg,  took 
with  him  one  of  us,  Rev.  Mr.  Gronau,  and  recom- 
mended him  to  preach  to  the  Germans  there,  which 
he  accordingly  did.  There  are  three  families  of 
our  Lutheran  confession  in  that  place.  Rev.  Gro- 
nau having  preached  for  them  from  Gal.  2  :  20, 
they  were  very  glad,  and  resolved  to  come  con- 
stantly to  our  settlement,  which  is  but  a  few,  three 
German,  miles  from  Purysburg  to  hear  the  word 
of  God,  and  to  receive  the  sacrament.  They  reckon 
the  Salzburgers  very  happy  in  having  their  own 
ministers,  for  at  Purysburg  they  are  now^  without 
a  minister." 

As  far  as  can  be  ascertained,  no  Lutheran  con- 
gregation was  ever  established  in  this  place,  as 
there  were  but  few  families  of  that  faith  in  the 
colony,  and  these  could  occasionally  attend  divine 
w^orship  at  Ebenezer.  Of  the  Episcopal  Church 
established  there,  Dalcho  further  states :  "  There 
has  been  no  incumbent  since  the  Revolution. 
Divine  service  has  occasionally  been  performed 
by  visiting  clergymen.  ]!^o  organized  Episcopal 
congregation  exists  here  at  present."  A.D.  1820. 

The  final  history  of  the  colony  is  hinted  at  by 
Mills,  page  370,  from  which  we  can  draw  our  own 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  99 

conclusions.  He  states  that  "  in  a  short  time  they 
felt  the  many  inconveniences  attending  a  change 
of  climate.  Several  of  them  sickened  and  died, 
and  others  found  the  hardships  of  the  first  state  of 
colonization  much  greater  than  they  expected. 
They  became  discontented.  Smarting  under  the 
pressure  of  indigence  and  disappointment  they  not 
only  blamed  Purry  for  deceiving  them,  but  repented 
leaving  their  native  country."  The  colony  lingered 
up  to  the  period  of  the  Revolutionary  war.  Mills 
informs  us  that  "  Purysburg  was  the  first  headquar- 
ters of  the  American  army  under  Lincoln  in  the 
Revolution.  It  afterwards  was  in  possession  of 
the  British  under  Prevost." 

A  large  number  of  these  Swiss  settlers  sought 
and  found  homes  in  other  parts  of  Carolina,  both 
before  and  after  the  Revolution,  which  left  to 
Purysburg  very  little  more  than  a  name  in  his- 
tory. 

Section  10.    The   German  and   Siviss  Colonists  of 
Orangeburg,  S.  C,  A.D.  1735. 

The  story  of  the  settling  of  Orangeburg,  South 
Carolina  is  a  page  in  the  history  of  that  State  which 
has  never  been  fully  written.  The  cause  of  this 
omission  can  scarcely  be  accounted  for,  as  ample 
materials  were  within  the  reach  of  former  histo- 
rians. Certain  outlines  have  been  given,  but  noth- 
ing very  satisfactory  has  been  furnished. 

"The  first  white  inhabitant  who  settled  in  this 
section  of  country  was  named  Henry  Sterling;  his 


100  THE   LUTIIEEAN    CHURCH 

occupation,  it  is  supposed,  was  that  of  a  trader. 
He  located  liimself  on  Lyon's  Creek  in  the  year 
1704,  and  obtained  a  grant  of  a  tract  of  land,  at 
present  in  the  possession  of  Colonel  Russel  P. 
McCord."  (Mills,  p.  656.) 

*'The  next  settlers  were  some  three  or  four  indi- 
viduals, wlio  located  themselves  at  the  Cowpens, 
northwesterly  of  the  low  countr}^  white  settle- 
ments; these,  and  the  Cherokee  and  Catawba 
Indians  were  all  the  inhabitants  who  had  pre- 
ceded the  Germans."  [Mills,  p.  657.) 

The  colonists  of  Orangeburg  County  and  town 
were  mostly  German  and  Swiss,  wdio  came  over 
from  Europe  in  a  large  body,  occupying  several 
vessels,  and  even  to  the  present  day  their  descen- 
dants are  easily  recognized  by  their  unmistakable 
German  names,  and  are  found  to  be  the  principal 
owners  and  occupants  of  the  soil  in  this  portion  of 
South  Carolina. 

The  principal  facts  concerning  the  early  history 
of  these  colonists  are  mainly  derived  from  the 
Journals  of  Council  of  the  Province  of  South 
Carolina,  as  found  in  manuscript  form  in  the 
office  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  as  well  as  from  the 
Church  record-book,  kept  by  their  first  pastors, 
the  two  Giessendanners,  uncle  and  nephew,  written 
in  the  German  and  English  languages,  which  is 
still  extant,  and  has  been  thoroughly  examined  by 
the  writer;  and  as  these  additional  facts  are  now 
presented  for  the  first  time,  it  is  hoped  that  they 
may  open  new  avenues,  which  will  aifbrd  future 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  101 

historians  of  the  State  additional  sources  of  research 
and  information. 

That  the  German  element  of  the  Orangeburg 
colonists  came  partly  from  Switzerland,  we  learn 
from  the  records  of  the  Giessendanners'  church- 
book,  as  it  was  the  custom  of  the  younger  Giessen- 
danner  to  mention  the  place  of  nativity  of  all  the 
deceased,  in  his  records  of  each  funeral  of  the 
early  settlers ;  and  as  this  emigration  from  that 
country  to  Orangeburg  occurred  only  two  or  three 
years  subsequent  to  the  emigration  of  a  former 
Swiss  colony  to  Purysburg,  S.  C,  it  certainly  re- 
quires no  great  stretch  of  the  imagination  to  ex- 
plain the  causes  which  induced  such  a  large  num- 
ber of  emigrants  from  that  country  to  locate  them- 
selves upon  the  fertile  lands  of  South  Carolina,- 
which  were  described  so  glowingly  by  John  Peter 
Pnrry  and  his  associates. 

Let  any  one  examine  the  pamphlets,  as  found  in 
vol.  ii  of  Carroll's  Collections,  which  Mr.  Purry 
published  in  reference  to  the  Province  of  South 
Carolina,  and  which  he  freely  distributed  in  his 
native  country,  in  which  the  fertility  of  the  soil, 
salubrity  of  the  climate,  excellency  of  government, 
safety  of  the  colonists,  opportunities  of  becoming 
Avealthy,  &c.,  &c.,  are  so  highly  extolled,  and  cor- 
roborated by  the  testimon}^  of  so  many  witnesses, 
and  he  will  easily  comprehend  what  the  Switzers 
must  have  ftmcied  that  province  to  be,  viz. :  the 
El  Dorado  of  America, — the  second  Palestine  of 
the  world. 

Mr.  Purry's  account  of  the  excellency  of  South 


102  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Carolina  for  safe  and  remunerative  settlement 
^went  round,  from  mouth  to  mouth,  in  many  a 
hamlet  and  cottage  of  the  little  mountain-girt 
countr}',  losing  nothing  by  being  told  from  one 
fiimily  to  another;  which,  with  the  additional 
fact,  that  many  had  relatives  and  friends  living  in 
both  the  Carolinas,  whom  they  possibl}^  might 
meet  again,  soon  fastened  their  affections  upon 
that  province,  and  induced  them  to  leave  the 
Fatherland,  and  make  their  future  homes  with 
some  of  their  countrymen  in  America.  Their 
little  all  of  earthly  goods  or  patrimony  was  soon 
disposed  of;  preparations  for  along  journey  were 
quickly  made,  as  advised  by  Mr.  Purry  in  his 
pamphlet;  the  journey  through  N'orth  Germany 
towards  some  seaport  w^as  then  undertaken  ;  and, 
with  other  Germans  added  to  their  number,  who 
joined  their  fortunes  with  them  whilst  passing 
through  their  country,  they  were  soon  rocked  upon 
the  bosom  of  the  ocean,  heading  towards  America, 
with  the  compass  pointed  to  their  expected  haven, 
Charleston,  South  Carolina. 

These  German  and  Swiss  settlers  did  not  all 
arrive  in  Orangeburg  at  the  same  time;  the  first 
colony  came  during  the  year  1735;  another  com- 
pany arrived  a  year  later,  and  it  was  not  until  1737 
that  their  first  pastor.  Rev.  John  Ulrich  Giessen- 
danner.  Senior,  came  among  them  with  another 
reinforcement  of  settlers;  whilst  Mills  informs  us 
that  emigrants  from  Germany  arrived  in  Orange- 
burg District  as  late  as  1769,  only  a  few  years  be- 
fore the  Revolution. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  103 

Like  most  of  the  early  German  settlers  of  Amer- 
ica, these  colonists  came  to  Carolina  not  as  "gen- 
tlemen or  traders,"  but  as  tillers  of  the  soil,  with 
the  honest  intention  "to  earn  their  bread  by  the 
sweat  of  the  brow,"  and  their  lands  soon  gave  evi- 
dence of  thrift  and  plenty,  and  they,  by  their  in- 
dustry and  frugality,  not  only  secured  a  compe- 
tency and  independence  for  themselves  and  their 
children  in  this  fertile  portion  of  South  Carolina, 
but  many  of  them  became  blessed  with  abundance 
and  wealth. 

From  the  records  of  Rev.  Giessendanner  we 
learn  that  there  were  also  a  considerable  number 
of  mechanics,  as  well  as  planters  and  farmers, 
among  these  colonists ;  and  the  results  of  this  Ger- 
man colonization  were  extremely  favorable  to 
Orangeburg  District,  inasmuch  as  they  remained 
there  as  permanent  settlers,  whilst  many  of  their 
countrymen  in  other  localities,  such  as  Purysburg, 
&c.,  were  compelled  to  leave  their  first-selected 
homes,  on  account  of  the  want  of  health  and  of 
that  great  success  which  they  had  at  first  expected, 
but  the  Orangeburg  settlers  became  a  well-estab- 
lished and  successful  colony. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  the  German  congrega- 
tion established  in  Orangeburg  among  these  settlers 
was  Refornied,  which  is  evidently  a  mistake,  as 
any  one  may  perceive  from  the  following  facts. 
On  the  one  hand,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
Switzers  came  from  the  land  where  John  Calvin 
labored,  and  where  the  Reformed  religion  prevails, 
but  where  there  are  also  many  Lutheran  churches 


104  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

established.  It  is  also  admitted  that  the  Giessen- 
daiiners  were  natives  of  Switzerland,  but  it  would 
be  unsafe  to  conclude  from  these  facts  that  the 
German  congregation  at  Orangeburg,  with  all,  or 
nearly  all,  of  its  members,  and  with  their  pastors, 
were  Swiss  Reformed  or  Calvinistic  in  their  faith. 
On  the  other  hand,  although  nothing  positive  is 
mentioned  in  the  Record-book  of  the  Church,  con- 
cerning their  distinctive  religious  belief,  yet  the 
presumptive  evidence,  even  from  this  source  of 
information,  is  sufficiently  strong  to  conclude  that 
this  first  religious  society  in  Orangeburg  was  a 
Lutheran  Church.  The  facts  from  wdiich  our  con- 
clusions are  drawn  are  : 

Firsili/. — Because  a  very  strong  element  from 
Germany  was  mixed  with  their  Swiss  brethren  in 
the  early  settling  of  this  county,  which,  by  still 
later  accession  of  German  colonists,  appears  to 
have  become  the  predominating  population,  who 
were  mostly  Lutherans,  and  the  presumption  be- 
comes strong  that  their  church-organization  was 
likewise  Lutheran. 

Secondly, — It  seems  to  have  been  a  commonly 
admitted  fact  and  the  prevailing  general  impres- 
sion of  that  time,  when  their  second  pastor  had 
become  an  ordained  minister  of  the  Church  of 
England. 

Thirdly. — In  examining  their  church  records 
one  will  discover,  through  its  entire  pages,  a  rec- 
ognition of  the  festivals  of  the  Lutheran  Church, 
as  w^ere  commonly  observed  by  the  early  Lutheran 
settlers. 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  105 

Fourilily. — In  Dalclio's  History  of  the  Prot.  Epis. 
Church  in  S.  C,  published  in  1820,  at  the  time 
when  the  son  of  the  younger  Giessendanner  was 
still  living  {see  Mills'  Statisiics,  p.  657,  imbllshed  as 
late  as  1826),  it  is  most  positively  stated  concern- 
ing his  father,  that  "he  was  a  minister  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church."  {Dalcho^^.  SSo,  fooinoie.)  How 
could  Dr.  Dalcho  have  been  mistaken  when  he  had 
the  records  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  South  Caro- 
lina before  him;  and  in  that  denomination  this 
was  the  prevailing  impression,  as  was,  doubtless, 
so  created  from  Giessendanner's  own  statements 
in  the  bosom  of  which  Church  he  passed  the  latter 
days  of  his  life. 

Fifthly. — One  of  the  churches  which  Giessen- 
danner served  before  he  became  an  Episcopal 
clergyman,  located  in  Amelia  Township,  called  St. 
Matthews,  has  never  been  any  other  than  a  Lu- 
theran Church,  and  is  still  in  connection  with  the 
Evangelical  Lutheran  Synod  of  South  Carolina. 

Sixthly. — The  Orangeburg  colonists,  after  their 
pastor  departed  from  their  faith,  were  served  with 
Lutheran  pastors  entirely,  numbering  in  all  about 
seventeen  ministers,  and  only  for  a  short  time  a 
Reformed  minister.  Rev.  Dr.  Zltbly,  once  labored 
there  as  a  temporary  supply. 

Sevmthly.  —  Li  Dr.  Hazelius'  History  of  the 
American  Lutheran  Church,  p.  64,  we  have  the 
following  testimony,  gathered  from  the  journal  of 
the  Ebenezer  pastors,  Bolzius  and  Gronau,  found 
in  Urlsperger's  Nachrichten  :  "  Their  journal  of 
that  time  mentions  among  other  things,  that  many 


106  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Lutherans  were  settled  in  and  about  Orangeburg 
in  South  Carolina,  and  that  their  preacher  resided 
in  the  village  of  Orangeburg." 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  all  this  testomonj^  is  satis- 
factory to  ever}^  candid  inquirer,  that  the  first  es- 
tablished Church  of  Orangeburg,  S.  C,  which  was 
likewise  the  first  organized  Lutheran  Church  in 
both  the  Carolinas,  was  none  other  than  a  Lutheran 
Church;  that  those  early  settlers  from  Germany 
and  Switzerland  were  mostly,  if  not  all,  of  the 
same  denomination,  and  that  Dr.  Dalcho  has  pub- 
lished no  falsehood  by  asserting  tbat  "their  pastor 
was  a  minister  of  the  Lutheran  Church." 

The  first  colony  of  German  and  Swiss  emigrants 
who  settled  in  Orangeburg  village  and  its  vicinity 
in  1735,  as  well  as  those  who  selected  their  homes 
in  Amelia  Township  along  Four-hole  swamp  and 
creek,  did  not  bring  their  pastor  with  them;  the 
Rev.  John  Ulrich  Giessendanner  did  not  arrive 
until  the  year  1737;  he  was  an  ordained  minister 
and  a  native  of  Switzerland,  and  was  the  first  and, 
at  the  time,  the  only  minister  of  the  gospel  in  the 
village  and  District  of  Orangeburg;  we  infer  this 
from  Mills'  Statistics,  p.  657,  stating  that  there 
were  but  four  or  five  English  settlers  residing  in 
tbe  District  before  the  Germans  arrived,  and  these 
few  would  not  likely  have  an  English  minister  of 
their  own  to  labor  among  them.  We  infer  this, 
moreover,  from  the  record  of  Giessendanner's 
marriages;  the  ceremony  of  one  was  performed 
in  the  English  language  during  the  first  year  of 
his  ministry,  with  the  following  remark  accompa- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  107 

iiying  it:  "Major  Motte  having  read  the  ceremony 
in  the  English  language,"  from  whicli  we  conclude 
that  at  the  time,  October  24th,  1737,  Rev.  Giessen- 
danner  was  still  unacquainted  with  the  English 
lanorua2:e,  and  that  on  this  account  he  solicited  the 
aid  of  Major  Motte  in  the  performance  of  a  clerical 
duty.  That  there  could  have  been  no  other  min- 
ister of  the  gospel  within  reach  of  the  parties,  who 
did  not  reside  in  the  village,  otherwise  they  would 
not  have  employed  Rev.  G.  to  perform  a  ceremony 
un.der  such  embarrassing  circumstances. 

Rev.  J.  U.  Giessendanner  came  to  this  country 
with  the  third  transportation  of  German  and  Swiss 
settlers  for  this  fertile  portion  of  South  Carolina. 
In  the  same  vessel  also  journeyed  his  future  part- 
ner in  life,  who  had  resided  at  his  home  in  Europe 
as  housekeeper  for  twenty-six  years,  and  to  whom, 
on  the  15th  of  November,  1737,  he  was  "  quietlj' 
married,  in  the  presence  of  many  witnesses,  by 
Major  Motte;"  doubtless  by  him,  as  no  minister 
of  the  gospel  was  within  their  reach,  to  which  rec- 
ord he  piously  adds  :  "May  Jesus  unite  us  closely 
in  love,  as  well  as  all  faithful  married  people,  and 
cleanse  and  unite  us  witli  himself.  Amen."  By 
this  union  he  had  no  children,  since  both  himself 
and  his  partner  were  "well  stricken  in  years." 

The  elder  Giessendanner  did  not  labor  long 
among  this  people.  Death  soon  ended  his  minis- 
trations in  Orangeburg,  and  we  infer  that  he  must 
have  died  about  the  close  of  the  year  1738,  since 
the  records  of  his  ministerial  acts  extend  to  the 
summer  of  that  year,  whilst  those  of  his  nephew 


108  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

commence  with  the  close  of  the  year  1739.  Allow- 
ing the  congregation  time  to  make  the  necessary 
arrangement  with  the  nephew,  and  he  to  have 
time  to  seek  and  ohtain  ordination,  as  we  shall  see 
hereafter,  besides  the  inference  drawn  from  the 
language  of  a  certain  petition,  &c.,  we  learn  that 
daHng  the  fall  of  1738,  the  Kev.  John  Ulrich  Gies- 
sendanner,  Sr.,  was  called  to  his  rest,  and  thus 
closed  his  earthly  career. 

The  congregations  in  Orangeburg  village  and 
District  now  looked  about  them  for  another  servant 
of  the  Lord  to  labor  among  them  in  holy  things, 
but  the  prospect  of  being  soon  supplied  was  not 
very  encouraging.  The  Ebenezer  pastors  were 
the  onl}^  Lutheran  ministers  in  the  South  at  that 
time,  and  they  could  not  be  spared  from  their 
arduous  work  in  Georgia,  and  to  expect  a  pastor 
to  be  sent  them  again  from  the  Fatherland  was  at- 
tended with  many  difhculties.  Another  plan  pre- 
sented itself  to  them.  The  nephew  of  their  first 
pastor,  who  had  prepared  himself  for  the  ministry, 
was  induced  to  seek  ordination  at  the  hands  of 
some  Protestant  denomination,  and  take  upon  him- 
self the  charge  of  these  vacant  congregations  in 
the  place  of  his  departed  uncle. 

From  the  records  of  the  Orangeburg  Church 
we  learn  that  their  second  pastor  was  also  named 
John  Ulrich  Giessendanner,buthe  soon  afterwards 
dropped  his  middle  name,  probably  to  distinguish 
him  from  his  uncle,  and  so  is  he  named  in  all  the 
histories  of  South  Carolina,  which  give  any  ac- 
count of  him. 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  109 

Difficulties  and  sore  trials  soon  attended  Rev. 
John  Giessendanner's  ministry;  the  Urlsperger 
Reports  state,  in  vol.  iii.,  p.  1079,  that  the  town  of 
Orangeburg  was  then,  A.D.  1741,  in  a  worse  con- 
dition than  Purysburg  ;  that  the  people  were  lead- 
ing very  sinful  lives,  manifesting  no  traces  of 
piety,  and  that  between  pastor  and  hearers  there 
were  constant  misunderstandings.  It  is  also  stated 
that  their  lands  were  fertile,. but,  as  they  were  far 
removed  from  Charleston,  and  had  no  communi- 
cation with  that  city  by  water,  they  could  not  con- 
vert their  produce  into  money,  and  on  this  account 
very  little  or  no  money  was  found  among  them. 
Dr.  Hazelius  likewise  gives  an  unfavorable  account 
of  the  state  of  religion  in  that  communit}^  On  p. 
64,  he  remarks :  "  From  one  circumstance  men- 
tioned with  particular  reference  to  that  congrega- 
tion, we  have  to  infer  that  the  spiritual  state  of 
that  church  was  by  no  means  pleasing.  A  Mr. 
KiefFer,  a  Salzburg  emigrant  and  member  of  the 
Ebenezer  congregation,  was  living  on  the  Carolina 
side  of  the  Savannah  River,  whose  mother-in-law 
resided  at  Orangeburg,  whom  he  occasionally 
visited.  On  one  occasion  he  remarked,  after  his 
return,  to  his  minister.  Pastor  Bolzius,  that  the 
people  at  Orangeburg  were  manifesting  no  hunger 
and  thirst  after  the  word  of  Grod ;  he  was  therefore 
anxious  that  his  mother-in-law  should  remove  to 
his  plantation,  so  that  she  might  enjoy  the  oppor- 
tunity of  attending  to  the  preaching  of  the  word 
of  God,  which  she  greatly  desired."  All  this  tes- 
timony, though  in  the  main  correct,  needs,  how- 


110  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ever,  some  explanation,  and  by  referring  to  the 
Journals  of  Council  for  this  province,  in  the  office 
of  the  Secretary  of  State,  we  will  soon  discover 
the  cause  of  such  a  state  of  things.  The  people 
had  been  but  sparingly  supplied  with  the  preached 
word,  the  discipline  of  the  Church  had  not  been 
properly  administered,  and  when  the  3'ounger 
Giessendanner  took  charge  of  these  congregations, 
and  attempted  to  regulate  matters  a  little,  whilst 
the  majority  of  the  people  sustained  him  in  his 
efforts,  a  minority,  who  were  rude  and  godless, 
became  his  bitter  enemies,  and  were  constantly 
at  variance  with  him. 

This  condition  of  Church  affairs  opened  the  way 
for  the  Zauberblihler  difficulties,  which  are  very 
minutely  described  in  the  Journals  of  Council  of 
the  Province  of  South  Carolina,  vol.  10,  page  395, 
et  seq. ;  the  main  facts  of  this  troublesome  affair 
were  the  following : 

During  the  year  1743,  a  Swiss  minister  of  the 
gospel,  formerly  located  along  the  Savannah  River, 
at  'New  Windsor,  Purysburg,  and  other  places, 
named  Bartholomew  Zauberblihler,  very  adroitly 
attempted  to  displace  the  Rev.  John  Giessendanner 
from  his  charge  in  Orangeburg,  and  make  him- 
self the  pastor  of  those  churches.  He  supposed 
that  by  becoming  an  ordained  minister  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  at  that  time  the  established 
church  in  the  Province,  he  would  have  rights  supe- 
rior to  the  humble  Lutheran  pastor  in  charge  at 
Orangeburg,  and,  as  he  supposed,  have  the  law  on 
his  side  in  thus  becoming  the  pastor  himself.    The 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  Ill 

records  of  his  evil  designs,  which  have  long  slum- 
bered in  oblivion  in  manuscript  form  on  tlie  shelves 
of  the  Statehouse  at  Columbia,  are  now  brought 
to  view,  and  read  as  follows  : 

^'JSTov.  9th,  1742.  Eead  the  petition  of  Rev.  B. 
Zauberblihler,  showing  that  as  there  were  a  great 
many  Germans  at  Orangeburg,  Santee,  and  there- 
abouts, who  are  ver}^  desirous  of  having  the  word 
of  God  preached  to  them  and  their  children,  and 
who  desire  to  be  instructed  in  the  true  religion, 
humbly  prays  :  That  he  may  be  sent  to  serve  them 
and  to  be  supported  with  a  competent  salary  until 
he  shall  be  able  to  take  a  voyage  to  England  to  be 
ordained  by  the  Bishop  of  London,  and  at  the  same 
time  proposes  to  bring  over  with  him  a  number  of 
Germans,  which  he  thinks  may  be  as  great  a  num- 
ber as  ever  were  brought  at  any  time  into  this 
province,  it  being  a  great  encouragement  to  them 
when  they  find  that  they  may  have  the  Gospel, 
not  only  on  their  voyage,  but  also  after  their  ar- 
rival in  this  province,  preached  to  them,  &c. 

"Upon  reading  the  said  petition,  it  was  the 
opinion  of  His  Majesty's  Council,  that  providing 
the  petitioner  do  produce  a  certificate  from  the 
inhabitants  of  Orangeburg,  as  also  a  certificate 
from  ye  Ecclesiastical  Commissary,  Mr.  Garden, 
of  his  qualifications  to  receive  orders  in  the  Church 
of  England,  and  his  engaging  to  go  home  to  Lon- 
don to  receive  ordination,  and  after  that  to  go  to 
Germany  to  procure  others  of  his  countrymen  to 
come  over  to  settle  in  this  province,  that  the  sum 
of  five  hundred  pounds  currency  be  advanced  him 


112  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

out  of  the  township  fund,  in  order  to  enable  him 
to  perform  the  same." 

Journals  of  Council,  vol.  xi,  pp.  74-76.  Under 
date  of  Feb.  13th,  1743-44:  "Reconsidered  the 
petition  of  Rev.  Mr.  Zauberblihler,  which  had 
been  exhibited  at  this  Board  on  the  10th  day  of 
l^ovember,  1743,  praying  that  in  consideration  of 
the  earnest  desire  of  the  inhabitants  of  Orangeburg, 
Santee,  to  have  a  person  to  preach  the  gospel  to 
them  in  their  own  language,  he  is  willing  to  per- 
form that  pastoral  duty,  but  being  as  yet  unor- 
dained,  desires  to  be  supported  with  a  competent 
salary  until  he  shall  be  able  to  take  a  voyage  to 
England  to  be  ordained,  at  which  time  he  proposes 
to  bring  over  a  number  of  foreign  Protestants  to 
settle  in  this  province,  who  are  unwilling  to  come 
over  for  want  of  having  the  gospel  preached  to 
them  in  their  vo^-age  here.  Whereupon  it  ap- 
pearing by  a  former  minute  of  Council,  of  the  10th 
of  ]N"ovember  last,  that  provided  the  petitioner  shall 
produce  a  certificate  from  the  inhabitants  of  Orange- 
burg of  their  desire  to  receive  him  as  a  preacher 
amongst  them,  and  also  a  certificate  from  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Garden  of  his  qualifications  to  receive  orders, 
that  then  the  sum  of  £500  current  money  be  ad- 
vanced him  out  of  the  township  fund,  in  order  to 
enable  him  to  perform  his  voyage,  and  bring  on 
the  Protestants  to  settle  here  as  he  mentions. 
Whereupon  the  petitioner  produced  the  following 
certificate  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Commissary  Garden: 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  113 

"South  Carolina. 
"  These  are  to  certify  whom  it  miiy  concern,  and 
in  particuhir  the  Et.  Rev.  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Lon- 
don, that  the  bearer,  Bartholomew  Zaiiberbllhler, 
a  native  of  Appenzell  in  Switzerland,  appears  to 
me  on  creditable  testimony  to  have  resided  in  this 
Province  for  the  space  of  seven  years  last  past,  and 
daring  that  time  to  have  been  of  good  life  and  be- 
havior as  becometh  a  candidate  for  holy  orders, 
&c.,  &c., 

"Signed,  Alexander  Garden. 

"February  13tli,  1743." 

,  "On  producing  the  said  certificate  his  Excel- 
lency signed  an  order  on  the  public  Treasurer  for 
the  sum  of  £500,  to  be  paid  him  on  condition  that 
the  Treasurer  take  his  written  obligation  to  repay 
the  said  money  upon  his  returning  and  settling  in 
the  Province,  in  case  he  does  not  bring  over  the 
Protestants  he  mentions." 

The  following  counter-petition  against  Mr.  Zau- 
berblihler  from  the  Orangeburg  settlers  is  found 
in  vol.  xi  of  Journals  of  Council,  pp.  139-143, 
and  dated  March  6th,  1743  : 

"Read  the  humble  petition  of  the  German  and 
English  inhabitants  of  Orangeburg  and  the  adjoin- 
ing plantations,  showing  to  his  Excellency',  to  whom 
it  is  directed,  that  the  petitioners  heartily  congratu- 
late his  Excellency  on  his  auspicious  ascension  to 
the  government  of  this  Province,  hoping  that  by 
his  judicious  care  and  power  not  only  their  pres- 
ent grievances,  but  likewise  all  other  misfortunes 

10 


114  THE    LUTHERAX    CHTJBCH 

may  evaporate  and  vanish.  And  jq  said  petition- 
ers humbly  beg  leave  to  acquaint  ye  Excellency, 
that  above  five  years  ago,  the  German  minister  hap- 
pening to  die,  Mr.  John  Giessendanner,  by  the  con- 
sent and  approbation  of  your  said  German  petition- 
ers, went  to  Charlestown  with  the  intention  to  make 
his  application  to  the  Eev.  Mr.  Alexander  Gar- 
den, Commissary,  to  admit  him  into  holy  orders, 
to  preach  in  German  in  this  township ;  and  when 
the  said  Mr.  John  Giessendanner  came  to  Charles- 
town  aforesaid,  he  accidentally  met  with  one  Major 
Christian  Motte,  who  acquainted  him  that  he 
ous^ht  not  to  trouble  the  said  Rev.  Alexander  Gar- 
den  with  the  affair,  but  to  go  w^ith  him  to  some 
certain  gentlemen,  who,  if  they  found  him  suffi- 
cient, would  directly  give  him  orders  according  to 
his  desire;  upon  which  the  said  Mr.  John  Giessen- 
danner, being  then  a  stranger  to  the  English 
method  of  proceeding  in  such  cases,  accompanied 
the  said  Major  Christian  Motte,  and  was  by  him 
introduced  to  an  assembly  of  the  Presbytery,  who, 
after  examination,  presented  him  with  orders  to 
preach,  wdiich  he  has  since  done  in  German  con- 
stantly for  the  space  of  five  years  to  the  inexpressi- 
ble satisfaction  of  the  congregation  at  Orangeburg; 
and  about  two  years  ago  your  said  English  peti- 
tioners, being  fully  sixty  miles  from  any  other 
place  of  divine  worship,  some  of  whom  had  not 
been  favored  with  an  opportunity  of  hearing  a 
sermon  in  the  space  of  seven  years,  observing  the 
said  Mr.  John  Giessendanner  to  be  a  man  of  learn- 
ing, piety,  and  knowledge  in  the  Holy  Scriptures, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  115 

prevailed  with  Ijim  to  officiate  in  preacliing  once 
every  fortnight  in  English,  which  he  hath  since 
performed  very  articulate  and  intelligible  to  the 
entire  satisfaction  of  ye  said  English  petitioners, 
and  always  behaves  himself  with  sobriety,  honesty, 
and  justice,  encouraging  virtue  and  reproving  vice. 
"And  the  said  Mr.  John  Giessendanner  lately 
observing  great  irregularities  and  disorders  being 
committed  almost  every  Sabbath  day  by  some 
wicked  persons  in  one  part  of  the  township,  pub- 
licly reprimanded  them  for  the  same,  which  re- 
proof so  exasperated  them  that  they  threatened  to 
kick  the  said  Mr.  John  Giessendanner  out  of  the 
church  if  he  offered  ^o  preach  there  any  more,  and 
have  lately  sent  for  one  Bartholemew  Zauberbiih- 
ler,  a  man  who  not  long  ago  pretended  to  preach 
at  Savannah  town,  but,  as  your  said  petitioners 
are  informed,  was  soon  obliged  to  leave  that  place 
and  a  very  indecent  character  behind  him.  The 
last  week  he  arrived  at  Orangeburg,  and  upon'the 
last  Sabbath,  he,  the  said  Bartholomew  Zauber- 
biihler  and  his  wicked  adherents  associated  to- 
gether, and  pretended  that  the  said  Bartholomew 
Zauberbiihler  had  brought  with  him  a  power  from 
the  Hon.  William  Bull,  Esq.,  late  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor of  this  Province,  his  Majesty's  Hon.  Coun- 
cil, and  the  Eev.  Mr.  Alexander  Garden,  Commis- 
sary, an  order  to  expel  the  said  Mr.  John  Giessen- 
danner from  the  church,  and  to  preach  there  him- 
self, and  some  of  ye  said  petitioners  demanded  a 
sight  of  his  said  authority,  but  he  refused  to  pro- 
duce it,  which  occasioned  great  animosities  and 


116  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

disorders  in  the  congTegatioo,  and  when  the  said 
Bartholomew  Zauberbiihler  makes  his  second  ap- 
pearance at  or  near  Orangeburg,  which  he  dechires 
shall  be  at  ye  expiration  of  three  weeks,  there  will 
certainly  be  more  disturbance  and  confusion  than 
before,  unless  some  powerful  means  be  used  to 
obstruct  it. 

"Whereupon  your  said  petitioners  most  humbly 
beg  that  your  Excellency  will  be  pleased  to  inter- 
pose with  your  authority,  and  direct  the  said  Mr. 
Alexander  Garden,  if  he  hath  given  or  granted 
any  such  orders,  to  countermand  them,  and  to  per- 
mit the  said  Mr.  John  Giessendanner  still  to  offi- 
ciate for  them  in  divine  service,  free  fron]  any 
further  disturbance  or  molestation,  &c. 

*' Signed  by  John  Ilarn,  and  above  fourscore 
more  subscribers. 

"  Ordered  by  Council  that  the  consideration  of 
this  aiFair,  and  of  the  above  petition,  and  those  of 
Ml*.  Zauberbiihler,  be  deferred  until  Mr.  Zauber- 
biihler's  return  from  England,  and  that  ye  Clerk 
acquaint  them  therewith  in  writing." 

Fortunately,  however,  Mr.  Zauberbiihler  had 
not  yet  departed  on  his  journej'  to  England  as  the 
Council  had  supposed,  but  had  been  lurking  for 
awhile  in  Orangeburg  District,  and  as  soon  as  he 
returned  to  Charleston  he  once  more  made  his 
appearance  upon  the  floor  of  the  Council  chamber. 

Journals  of  Council,  Vol.  XI,  p.  113:  "Bar- 
tholomew Zauberbiihler,  being  returned  from 
Orangeburg  Township,  attended  his  Excellency 
in  Council,  and  laid  before  him  two  written  cer- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  117 

tificates  from  justices  of  ye  peace  there  in  his  favor, 
and  which  were  read,  representing  his  sobriety 
and  good  behavior,  whereupon  Mr.  Zauberbiihler 
was  by  his  Excellency  directed  to  wait  again  on 
Rev.  Mr.  Garden,  and  to  learn  if  he  has  any  objec- 
tions to  his  receiving  orders  in  England,  and  to 
report  the  same." 

Journals  of  Council,  Yol.  XI,  p.  152:  ''Bar- 
tholomew Zauberbiihler  attended  his  Excellency, 
the  Governor,  in  Council,  according  to  order, 
whom  the  Governor  gave  to  understand  that  he 
had  not  acted  well  in  the  exhibiting  a  certificate 
from  the  Tow^nship  of  Orangeburg,  read  at  this 
Board  on  l^ovember  loth,  1742,  seeing  that  under 
the  notion  of  having  an  invitation  to  the  ministry 
by  the  majority  of  that  Township,  there  was,  on 
the  contrary,  a  later  memorial  laid  before  the 
Board,  signed  by  near  ninety  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  by  far  the  majority  of  the  Township,  praying 
that  Mr.  Giessendanner,  their  present  minister, 
might  be  continued  to  preach  among  them,  and 
that  Mr.  Zauberblihler's  going  to  preach  in  the 
said  Townshi[),  and  his  design  to  be  settled  there 
as  a  minister,  was  not  by  their  desire,  on  the  con- 
trary, had  occasioned  no  small  disturbance  in  the 
said  Township.  That  his  proceedings  with  the 
Lieutenant-Governor  and  Council  in  ye  said  affair 
had  not  been  with  that  candor  that  might  have 
been  expected  from  one  who  designed  to  take  on 
him  holy  orders,  and  that,  therefore,  he  ought  to 
be  contented  with  at  least  one-half  of  what  had 
been  paid  him  by  ye  Treasurer,  and  return  the 


118  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

other  £250,  or,  at  any  rate,  to  procure  a  joint  se- 
curity of  one  residing  in  Charlestown  that  he 
•would  return  the  money  in  case  he  did  not  bring 
over  the  foreign  Protestants  mentioned,  but  that 
if  he  did  bring  them  over  the  whole  £500  should 
be  allowed  him ;  whereupon  Mr.  Zauberblihler 
withdrew." 

After  this  action  of  the  Governor  and  Council 
we  read  nothino^  more  of  Mr.  Zauberblihler  in  the 
Journals  of  Council,  and  the  Rev.  John  Giessen- 
danner  was  permitted  to  continue  his  labor  as 
pastor  in  Orangeburg  without  further  molestation. 

The  historical  facts  deduced  from  the  above 
State  papers  are  the  following: 

That  the  Rev.  John  Ulrich  Giessendanner,  Sr., 
who  was  the  first  pastor  at  Orangeburg,  departed 
this  life  during  the  close  of  the  year  1738,  having 
labored  there  but  little  more  than  one  year. 

That  his  nephew,  the  Rev.  John  Giesendanner, 
became  his  successor  some  time  during  the  year 
1739,  and  that  he  was  "a  man  of  learning,  piety, 
and  knowledge  in  the  Holy  Scriptures;"  he  was 
probably  educated  for  the  ministry,  but  left  Europe 
before  he  had  been  ordained;  that,  although  a 
Lutheran  in  his  religious  persuasion,  as  we  learn 
from  other  documents,  he  applied  for  ordination 
at  the  hands  of  any  Protestant  ministry  who  were 
empowered  to  impart  the  desired  authority,  there 
being  at  that  time  no  Lutheran  Synod  in  all  the 
American  colonies.  That  he  was  ordained  by  the 
Charleston  Presbyter}^  is  certain,  but  that  he  was 
not  a  Presbyterian  in  faith  is  evident  also,  else  he 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  119 

would  not  liave  endeavored  first  to  obtain  ordina- 
tion at  the  hands  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  au- 
thority, and  only  changed  his  purpose  of  becoming 
Episcopally  ordained  at  the  suggestions  of  Major 
Christian  Motte,  and  doubtless  also  to  avoid  an 
expensive  and  wearisome  voyage  to  Europe,  which 
he  would  have  been  obliged  to  undertake  had  he 
insisted  upon  obtaining  the  requisite  authority  to 
preach  the  gospel  and  administer  tlie  sacraments 
either  in  the  Lutheran  or  Episcopal  Church, 

That  the  first  Orangeburg  Church  must  have 
been  built  some  time  before  the  above-mentioned 
petition  was  written,  A.D.  1743,  as  it  is  therein 
spoken  of,  as  being  then  in  existence. 

That  Rev.  John  Giessendanner  labored  faith- 
fully as  a  good  servant  of  his  Master,  even  bring- 
ing enmity  upon  himself  for  reproving  vice;  like- 
wise, that  he  preached  in  the  German  and  English 
languages. 

That  the  country  in  the  vicinity  of  Orangeburg 
must  have  been  sadly  deficient  at  that  time  in  the 
enjoyment  of  the  usual  means  of  grace,  as  many 
persons  were  living  sixty  miles  from  any  other 
church,  some  having  not  heard  a  sermon  preached 
for  seven  years;  need  we  wonder  at  the  irregulari- 
ties in  faith  and  conduct  manifested  in  those  days. 

That  Rev.  Giessendanner  must  have  had  a  con- 
siderable congregation,  inasmuch  as  the  petition 
drawn  up  in  his  defence  was  signed  by  nearly 
ninety  male  persons,  who  were  either  all  members 
of  his  congregation,  or  mostly  so,  and  the  remain- 
der his  friends  and  adherents. 


120  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

That  Rev.  Bartholomew  Zauberbiihler  must 
Ijave  sadly  degenerated  in  the  latter  period  of  his 
ministerial  life,  as  the  Ebenezer  pastors  give  us  a 
very  favorable  account  of  him  several  years  pre- 
vious in  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  when  he  first 
came  to  this  country. 

Rev.  Giesseudanner  was  affectionately  remem- 
bered by  the  Church  in  Europe.  Rev.  Bolzius, 
in  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  875,  states: 
"I  also  wrote  a  letter  to-day  to  young  Mr,  Gies- 
seudanner, the  present  minister  in  Orangeburg, 
informing  him  that  a  donation  of  about  nine 
guilders  had  been  collected  for  him  in  Switzer- 
land, of  vrhich  a  respectable  merchant  in  Zurich 
writes,  that  as  old  Mr.  Giesseudanner  had  died, 
this  amount  should  be  paid  over  to  his  nephew. 
Also,  that  we  will  send  him,  as  soon  as  possible, 
those  books  collected  for  him  in  Switzerland, 
which  are  sent  in  the  chest  for  us,  and  which  has 
not  yet  arrived. 

"I  would  have  been  pleased  to  have  sent  him 
this  money  sooner  had  any  safe  opportunity  pre- 
sented itself.  I  entreated  him,  likewise,  to  write 
to  me  occasionally,  and  inform  me  of  the  transac- 
tions of  the  departed  Giesseudanner,  which  may 
be  of  great  service  to  him." 

The  name  of  Rev.  Giesseudanner  occurs  in  sev- 
eral other  paragraphs  of  the  same-  Reports,  but 
only  in  connection  with  the  books  and  monej^ 
above-mentioned ;  but  nothing  further  is  said  con- 
cerning himself  and  his  ministry,  or  that  of  his 
predecessor.     He   was  probably  prevented   from 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  121 

imparting  the  desired  information  on  account  of 
the  want  of  communication  between  Ebenezer  and 
Orangeburg. 

Kev.  John  Gi^ssendanner  Labored  ten  years  as 
a  Lutheran  minister,  after  which,  in  1749,  he  went 
to  London  to  receive  Episcopal  ordination  at  the 
hands  of  Rev.  Dr.  Sherlock,  Bishop  of  London. 
The  reasons  for  making  this  change  in  his  Church 
relationship  are  not  known ;  however,  it  is  pre- 
sumable that,  as  he  was  then  the  only  Lutheran 
pastor  in  South  Carolina,  he  preferred  to  enjoy  a 
more  intimate  connection  with  some  ministerial 
organization  than  the  one  that  was  then  afforded 
him  in  the  bosom  of  his  own  Church;  and  although 
the  Ebenezer  pastors  were  also  then  laboring  in 
the  South,  nevertheless  they  were  somewhat  dis- 
tantly removed  from  him,  and  dwelling  in  another 
Province.  He  doubtless  also  had  his  fears  that 
some  other  Zauberblihler  difficulty  might  harass 
him  again,  and  thus,  by  taking  this  step,  he  woukl 
have  all  legal  preferences  in  his  favor,  as  the 
Church  of  England  was  then  virtually  the  estab- 
lished Church  of  the  Province. 

He  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Barbara 
Hug,  and  became  the  father  of  several  children, 
one  of  whom,  a  son  named  Henry,  born  July  3d, 
1742,  was  still  living  in  1826,  as  he  is  mentioned 
in  "  Mills*  Statistics ;"  and  his  widow  spent  the 
close  of  her  life  w^ith  one  of  her  children  residing 
in  Georgia. 

Henry  Giessendanner  was  married  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  Rumpf,  February  25th,  1767;    he  re- 

U 


122  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

corded  the  birth  of  but  one  child,  Elizabeth,  in 
his  father's  church-book,  thouoh  he  may  have 
had  more  children,  whose  names  were  not  entered 
there.  This  record-book  likewise  informs  us  that 
Rev.  John  Giessendanner  had  a  brother  and  sister 
living  in  Orangeburg,  named  George  and  Elizabeth 
(afterwards  married  to  a  Mr.  Krieh),  and  that  the 
whole  family  were  natives  of  Switzerland;  hence 
also  the  money  sent  Rev.  Giessendanner  came  from 
this  country,  as  mentioned  in  the  Urlsperger  Re- 
ports. This  concludes  the  history  of  the  Giessen- 
danner family,  as  far  as  it  is  necessary  for  our  pur- 
pose, and  until  recently  it  was -not  known  that 
these  two  pastors  were  the  first  Lutheran  minis- 
ters that  labored  in  South  Carolina — even  their 
very  names  had  become  ahiiost  obliterated  in  the 
annals  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  Dr.  Dalcho  yet 
adds  this  information,  that  Rev.  John  Giessen- 
danner departed  this  life  during  the  year  1761. 

The  Orangeburg  settlers  at  first  clustered  to- 
gether near  the  banks  of  the  Edisto  River,  and 
built  their  dwellings  near  each  other  in  the  form 
of  a  small  town,  supposing  that  the  adjacent  stream 
would  be  advantageous  in  forming  an  outlet  for 
them  to  Charleston,  in  the  transportation  of  lum- 
ber to  market.  A  year  later  other  German  emi- 
grants arrived,  who  located  themselves  on  lands 
adjoining  their  predecessors,  and  thus  this  tide  of 
immigration  continued  until  the  entire  district  be- 
came mostlj^  colonized  with  German  and  Swiss 
emigrants.  The  present  town  of  Orangeburg  is 
located  very  near  the  spot  where  this  original 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  123 

German  village  once  stood.  In  this  village  the 
first  Lutheran  church  in  the  Carolinas  was  erected, 
and  there  also  the  first  Lutheran  pastor  of  this 
congregation  lived  and  died ;  his  nephew  and  suc- 
cessor, as  is  supposed  by  some  of  the  present  in- 
habitants, had  his  home  several  miles  from  the 
village,  where  he  died  and  was  buried. 

Some  half  a  mile  from  the  centre  of  the  present 
town  of  Orangeburg  and  towards  the  Edisto  Eiver 
there  is  a  graveyard,  which  presents  the  appear- 
ance of  having  been  a  long  time  in  use  for  the 
interment  of  the  dead,  and  where  the  entombed 
generations  of  the  present  day  are  silently  slum- 
bering with  those  of  the  past.  It  is  still  styled 
"  the  old  graveyard,''^  although  there  are  many  new- 
made  graves  to  be  seen  in  it;  and  here,  doubtless, 
repose  the  remains  of  the  first  Lutheran  pastor  in 
the  Carolinas. 

During  the  evening  twilight  of  autumn  the 
writer  visited  this  hallowed  spot,  in  order  to  com- 
mune with  the  dead;  the  seared  and  faded  leaves 
of  October  overhanging  his  head  or  rustling  be- 
neath his  feet;  the  peculiar  sighing  sound  of  the 
winds  of  autumn,  passing  through  the  foliage  of 
the  Southern  long-leaved  pine  trees,  produced 
l^ature's  sad  and  fitting  requiem  for  the  dead. 
He  sought  for  records  of  the  past  upon  some  di- 
lapidated tombstone,  but  his  search  was  unavail- 
ing, and,  like  the  fallen  leaves  of  many  years  past, 
even  these  mementos  of  a  former  age  were  no 
longer  visible. 

"What  lessons  of  the  vanity  of  all  human  great- 


124  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ness,  namely :  the  power  of  wealth,  the  pride  of 
family,  the  pleasures  and  gayeties  of  life  !  All  end 
at  last  in  the  grave — all  alike  blend  in  one  com- 
mon dust. 

Around  this  place,  w^ith  the  old  church  edifice 
very  near  it,  the  former  village  stood;  they  are 
both  thus  described  by  a  correspondent:  "The 
Orangeburg  church  was  built  of  wood  and  clay, 
in  much  the  same  manner  as  chimneys  are  when 
made  of  clay ;  the  old  graveyard  is  still  used  as  a 
burial-ground  common  to  all;  and  the  site  of  the 
church  is  still  plainly  seen — it  is  in  the  village, 
and  was  at  that  day  in  the  centre  of  it.  I  have 
learned  this  likewise  from  an  old  gentleman  w^ho 
remembers  hearing  his  father  saying  this  as  above. 
It  fell  to  ruins  at  the  time  of  the  "Revolution ;  but 
the  spot  has  never  been  built  upon  since  that  day, 
and  is  now  known  as  ^  the  old  churchyard.'  This 
church  was  the  one  used  by  the  Rev.  John  Gies- 
sendanner  as  an  Episcopal  church,  and  no  doubt 
used  likewise  by  him  at  first  as  a  Lutheran  church; 
its  dimensions  were — say  thirty  by  fifty  feet." 

The  time  when  the  old  church  edifice  was 
erected  is  now  no  longer  known,  and  can  only  be 
a  matter  of  conjecture;  however,  it  is  possible 
that  this  event  occurred  during  the  elder  Giessen- 
danner's  ministry — the  records  do  not  positively 
state  this  to  have  been  the  case,  nevertheless  sev- 
eral indications  are  given  which  make  it  very 
probable  that  this  was  the  time. 

It  became  changed  into  an  Episcopal  house  of 
worship  in  1749,  when  the  pastor,  the  younger 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  125 

Giesseiiclanner,  took  orders  in  the  Church  of 
England,  as  he  continued  to  labor  there  to  the 
close  of  his  life.  At  the  time  this  chansre  was 
effected,  the  congregation  numbered  107  commu- 
nicants, and  on  Whitsunday  following  21  persons 
more  were  admitted  to  the  Lord's  Supper. 

In  concluding  the  history  of  this  congregation, 
we  would  simply  add,  that  after  Eev.  Giessen- 
danner's  death  nothing  further  is  known  concern- 
ing it  until  1768,  when  a  new  Episcopal  chapel 
was  ordered  to  be  erected,  and  the  Rev.  Paul 
Turquand  preached  there  in  connection  with 
another  congregation. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War,  Rev.  Turquand 
was  absent,  and  labored  in  the  valley  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, but  returned  in  1788,  when  he  resumed 
his  labors  in  Orangeburg,  and  died  the  following 
year;  since  then  no  trace  is  left  of  the  history  of 
the  church  and  its  congregation. 

The  present  Episcopal  Church  in  the  town  of 
Orangeburg  is  of  recent  organization,  and  their 
house  of  worship  is  comparatively  new,  indicating 
that  the  old  church  edifice,  the  still  later  erected 
chapel,  and  the  former  congregation  have  long 
since  become  entirely  extinct. 

The  existing  Lutheran  church  and  congregation 
in  Orangeburg  are  of  a  still  more  recent  date ;  both 
the  organization  and  church  edifice  have  no  his- 
torical connection  with  the  past,  made  up  of  ma- 
terial in  membership  who  have  become  citizens 
of  the  place  not  many  years  ago. 


126  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Section  11.   The  German  Settlers  of  Saxe-Gotha  Town- 
ship^  now  Lexington  County^  S.  C,  A.D.  17 87. 

In  Mills'  Statistics  of  South  Carolina,  page  611, 
we  have  the  foUowins;  statement  in  reference  to 
Lexington  District  (now  County) :  "  This  District, 
when  first  settled,  was  merged  in  Orangeburg  pre- 
cincts. A  parish  and  township  were  laid  out  in 
about  the  year  1750,  and  named  Saxe-Gotha,  in 
compliment  to  the  first  settlers  of  the  country,  who 
came  from  that  part  of  Germany." 

An  entirely  difierent  statement  may  be  found 
on  pages  25  and  26  of  Dr.  Hazelius'  History  of 
the  American  Lutheran  Church ;  from  which  we 
learn  that  the  name  Saxe-Gotha  originated  in 
Queen  Anne's  time,  and  that  the  first  settlers  of 
that  county  "came  from  the  neighborhood  of  the 
Rhine,  Baden,  and  Wlirtemberg,"  kingdoms  con- 
siderably removed  from  Saxe-Gotha. 

But  from  the  Journals  of  Council,  in  the  ofi3.ce 
of  the  Secretary  of  the  State,  the  date  of  the  set- 
tlement of  Saxe-Gotha  by  Germans  is  unmistak- 
ably fixed  to  be  1737,  and  that  few,  if  any,  of  the 
first  settlers  of  that  county  came  from  Saxe-Gotha. 

Council  Journal,  vol.  viii,  p.  69:  "May  26th, 
1742. — Petition  of  John  Caspar  Gallier  and  family, 
John  Caspar  Gieger  and  family,  John  Shalling 
and  familj^  Abram  Gieger  and  family,  Jacob 
Liver  and  family,  Julius  Gredig  and  family, 
Caspar  Fry  and  family,  Conrad  and  Caspar 
Kiintzler  (now  Kinsler),  John  Jacob  Bieman  and 
family,  Herrman    Gieger   and   family,  Elizabeth 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  127 

Shalliiig  and  famil}^,  showing  that,  as  they  arrived 
and  settled  in  his  Majesty's  Township  of  Saxe- 
Gotha,  even  since  the  year  1737,  and  received  his 
Majesty's  most  gracious  bounty  of  provisions  and 
warrants  for  lands  in  Saxe-Gotha  Township,  but 
that  they  could  not  find  in  what  office  they  are, 
therefore  they  humbly  pray  his  Honor,  the  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor, and  his  Majesty's  honorable 
Council,  that  they  would  be  pleased  to  order  that 
search  may  be  made,"  &c.,  &c. 

Again,  under  date  1744,  "John  Jacob  Gieger 
arrived  seven  years  ago,  is  now  married,  and  prays 
for  one  hundred  acres  of  land  over  against  Santee 
River,  opposite  Saxe-Gotha,  where  he  has  already 
begun  to  clear  ground  and  almost  finished  a  house. 
Granted."  Subtract  seven  years  from  1744,  and 
v^e  have  again  the  date  1737,  the  time  of  the  first 
settlement  of  that  township  by  Germans, 

From  the  above  reliable  source  of  information 
we  evidently  perceive  that  Mills'  statement  is  en- 
tirely incorrect,  and  that  Saxe-Gotha  Tow^nship 
was  laid  out  and  received  its  name  long  before 
the  year  1750,  as  it  is  spoken  of  in  the  Journals 
of  Council  as  early  as  1742,  as  being  then  a  town- 
ship and  known  by  the  name,  Saxe-Gotha,  and 
may  have  been  so  called,  according  to  Dr.  Haze- 
lius'  statement,  during  Queen  Anne's  time,  pre- 
vious to  the  year  1714,  the  time  of  her  Majesty's 
death.  However,  the  Council  Journals  likewise 
prove  the  Doctor  to  have  been  mistaken  in  stating 
that  these  lands  were  wrested  from  the  Germans, 
for  they  settled  there,  and  their  descendants  are 


128  THE    LUTHEEAN   CHUKCH 

there  still,  occupying  the  very  lands  which  their 
forefathers  had  received  by  warrant  from  the  king 
of  England,  showing  conclusively  that,  inasmuch 
as  their  titles  came  directly  to  them  from  the  first 
legal  authority,  these  lands  had  not  yet  passed  into 
other  hands. 

But  it  is  possible  that,  as  in  the  State  of  New 
York,  the  benevolent  Queen  Anne  did  make 
grants  of  land  for  church  and  school  purposes  in 
Saxe-Gotha  Township,  which,  however,  could  not 
be  occupied  at  the  time,  as  the  settlements  in 
South  Carolina  had  then  not  been  extended  so  far 
inland  ;  the  Indians  were  still  in  possession  of  that 
portion  of  the  province,  and  the  grants  and  good 
intentions  of  the  Queen  were  eventually  lost  sight 
of  and  forgotten.  Afterwards,  when  the  Germans 
did  actually  locate  themselves  in  Saxe-Gotha,  new 
warrants  were  issued  and  secured  to  them  by  the 
authority  of  the  then  ruling  sovereign,  his  Majesty 
George  II. 

Independent  of  the  actual  accounts  and  dates  of 
the  settling  of  this  township,  we  have  before  us 
the  general  rule  that  "Westward  the  star  of  em- 
pire takes  its  way,"  and  that  the  farther  westward 
or  inland  the  settlements  were  made,  the  later 
will  be  the  dates  of  such  settlements.  This  is  the 
result  of  natural  causes,  and  admits  of  no  excep- 
tions to  the  well-known  rule;  the  lirst  settlers  of 
America  necessarily  located  themselves  along  the 
seashore,  afterwards  a  little  more  inland,  whilst 
the  aborigines,  living  in  the  forest,  gradually  re- 
ceded from  the  march  of  civilization ;  then  further 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  129 

encroaches  were  made  upon  their  territory,  and 
so  on,  gradually,  until  the  Appalachian  chain  of 
mountains  was  reached.  After  the  Revolutionary 
War  even  the  mountains  formed  no  barrier  to  the 
settlements  of  the  whites,  and  thus,  in  a  short  time, 
nearly  all  of  America  became  populated,  even  be- 
yond the  valley  of  the  Mississippi. 

Orangeburg,  South  Carolina,  was  settled  by 
Germans  in  1735;  Saxe-Gotha,  further  inland,  of 
necessity  was  settled  still  later;  hence  common 
sense  will  admit  of  no  date  of  permanent  settle- 
ment earlier  than,  or  even  as  early  as,  that  period 
of  time. 

Saxe-Gotha  comprised  nearly  all  that  portion 
of  territory  embraced  at  present  in  Lexington 
County;  it  is  not  many  years  since  the  name  was 
changed,  in  honor  of  the  battle  of  Lexington, 
Massachusetts,  by  an  act  of  legislature,  which  was 
a  most  unfortunate  exchange  of  names,  being  less 
euphonic,  very  inappropriate,  and  altogether  un- 
historical.  Give  us  back  the  old  name,  and  may 
the  citizens  of  old  Saxe-Gotha,  in  South  Carolina, 
never  be  ashamed  of  their  German  names  and 
German  extraction. 

How  the  name  originated,  as  applied  to  this 
township,  it  is  impossible  to  state.  It  certainly 
was  not  so  called  in  compliment  to  the  Germans 
who  settled  there,  as  they  came  from  a  different 
section  of  Germany;  it  is  possible  that  the  name, 
"Saxe-Gotha,"  was  applied  to  this  scope  of  terri- 
tory during  Queen  Anne's  reign,  as  intimated  by 
Dr.  Hazelius,  and  thus,  even  by  name,  it  was  to  be 


130  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

distinguished  as  a  future  home  for  German  emi- 
grants. 

The  following  record  of  this  settlement  is  made 
in  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  vol.  iii,  p.  1791 :  "  Wed- 
nesday, December  2d,  1741.  We  had  heard  nothing 
before  of  Saxe-Gotha  in  America,  but  we  have  just 
received  the  intelligence  that  such  a  town  (town- 
ship) is  laid  out  in  South  Carolina,  twenty-five 
German  miles  (100  English  miles)  from  Charles- 
town,  on  the  road  which  passes  through  Orange- 
burg, and  settled  with  German  people.  Doubtless 
the  majority  of  them  were  German  Reformed,  as 
they  have  a  Reformed  minister  among  them,  with 
whose  character  we  are  not  yet  acquainted."  This 
minister  was  the  Rev.  Christian  Theus,  of  whom 
we  shall  say  more  hereafter.  He  commenced,  his 
labors  in  Saxe-Gotha  as  early  as  1739. 

The  Geiger  families  and  their  neighbors  were 
not  compelled  to  remain  a  long  time  as  isolated 
settlers  in  their  new  homes  ;  the  name  Saxe-Gotha 
sounded  so  agreeably  familiar  to  the  ears  of  the 
Germans  that  they  flocked  in  numbers  to  this 
Germany  in  America. 

Besides,  a  certain  German,  named  Hans  Jacob 
Riemensperger,  contracted  with  the  government 
to  bring  over  a  number  of  Swiss  settlers,  many  of 
whom  he  located  in  this  township,  as  we  learn 
from  Urlsperger,  vol.  iii,  p.  1808,  and  from  the 
Journals  of  Council,  on  several  different  pages. 
In  addition  to  these  settlers,  this  same  Riemen- 
sperger, in  company  with  a  Mr.  Haeg,  brought  a 
number  of  orphan  children    to  Saxe-Gotha,  for 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  131 

which  service  to  the  province,  as  well  as  for  the 
boarding  of  the  children,  they  brought  in  their 
accounts  to  the  Council  for  payment.  Vol.  viii,  pp. 
69  and  70. 

Settlement  of  Bedemptmiers. 

Some  of  our  best  and  most  useful  settlers  in  the 
South  were  persons,  who,  too  poor  to  pay  their 
passage-money  across  the  ocean,  were  sold  by  the 
captains  of  the  vessels,  that  brought  them  to 
America,  to  any  one  of  the  settlers  who  felt  in- 
clined to  secure  their  labor.  The  price  for  which 
they  were  sold  in  Carolina  was  usually  from  five 
to  six  pounds,  sterling  mone}^,  and  both  men  and 
women  were  thus  alike  sold  to  service;  and  then, 
by  hard  labor,  which  extended  over  a  period  of 
from  three  to  five  years,  they  eventually  redeemed 
themselves  from  this  species  of  servitude. 

The  advantages  of  such  an  arrangement  to  them 
and  to  their  adopted  colony  were,  upon  the  whole, 
important  and  salutary. 

1.  Our  infant  colonies  stood  in  need  of  a  useful 
population  which  would  prove  a  defence  to  the 
country  in  case  of  the  execution  of  the  continued 
threatenings  of  a  Spanish  invasion,  and  the  sudden 
attack  of  hostile  Indians. 

2.  Besides,  labor  was  greatly  needed  for  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  virgin  soil,  and  these  poor  Germans 
— many  of  them  excellent  farmers,  some  of  them 
useful  artisans,  and  all  of  them  hard-working 
people — furnished  this  labor,  and  at  very  cheap 
rates. 


132  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

3.  The  countiy  also  needed  permanent  settlers 
who  would  become  habituated  to  the  soil  and  cli- 
mate, who  would  learn  to  love  their  adopted  coun- 
try, by  being  compelled  to  remain  until  they  had 
fully  tested  all  the  advantages  of  the  same;  these 
the  Redemptioners  abundantly  supplied  in  their 
own  persons. 

4.  'Nov  were  the  advantages  to  them  of  slight 
importance.  They  had  nothing  to  risk  in  the 
shape  of  property,  as  they  possessed  nothing  'of 
this  world's  goods,  and  thus  they  never  became  a 
prey  to  those  landsharks  which  often  despoil  the 
less  sagacious  immigrants  of  much  of  the  posses- 
sions which  they  brought  with  them  to  America. 

5.  Besides,  they  were  the  poorer  class  of  people 
at  home  in  Europe,  and  would  always  have  re- 
mained in  this  condition,  had  such  an  arrangement 
not  existed;  but  now  they  enjoyed  the  flattering 
prospect  of  receiving  competency  and  wealth  at 
some  future  day. 

6.  Then  again,  their  servitude  became  their  ap- 
prenticeship in  America;  in  the  meantime  they 
learned  the  English  language,  they  became  ac- 
quainted with  the  laws  and  customs  of  the  new 
country,  they  discovered  by  silent  observation 
what  would  in  future  be  to  their  advantage,  and 
thus  in  every  way  did  they  become  qualified  by 
sagacity,  industry,  and  economy,  for  their  new  and 
independent  sphere  of  life. 

Yet  it  must  be  confessed  that  they  had  to  endure 
many  hardships;  often  were  they  rigorously  treated 
by  their  ship  captains;  ill  and  insufliciently  fed  on 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  133 

their  voyage  across  the  ocean,  and  on  shore  hefore 
they  were  purchased  for  their  services ;  exposed 
publicly  for  sale  as  the  African  slave ;  often  treated 
harshly  by  their  masters  who  purchased  them,  and 
compelled  to  labor  in  the  broiling  sun  of  a  south- 
ern climate,  and  many,  by  disease  and  death,  fre- 
quently closed  their  short  earthly  career. 

However,  when  our  country  had  become  suffici- 
ently populated,  the  government  interposed  and 
put  an  end  to  this  kind  of  servitude,  on  account 
of  the  severity  of  the  lot  of  these  unfortunate  la- 
borers, and  thus  abandoned  this  source  of  coloni- 
zation. In  confirmation  of  these  facts,  the  follow- 
ing extracts  will  furnish  abundant  proof,  and  are 
herewith  submitted : 

Journals  of  Councils,  vol.  xiv,  p.  87,  January 
24th,  1741:  "Read  the  petition  of  a  considerable 
number  of  Protestant  Palatines,  most  humbly 
showing  that  the  poor  petitioners  have  been  on 
board  the  St.  Andrew's,  Captain  Brown  com- 
mander, these  twenty-six  weeks  past,  and  there  is 
as  yet  no  likelihood  for  them  to  get  free  of  her, 
because  there  are  none  of  us  yet  who  have  pur- 
chased their  service;  they  therefore  humbly  pray 
his  Excellency  and  Honors  that  they  may  find  so 
much  favor  as  to  their  passages  that  a  sum  equiva- 
lent to  discharge  the  same  be  raised  by  the  gov- 
ernment, for  which  they  promise  to  join  in  a  bond 
to  repay  the  same  within  the  term  of  three  years, 
with  lawful  interest;  and  that  if  any  of  them  shall 
not  be  able  to  pay  the  above  sum  within  that  time, 
that  the  government  in  that  case  shall  have  full 


134  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

power  to  dispose  of  them  and  their  families  as  they 
shall  think  proper,  &c.  Ordered  to  make  investi- 
gations, and  report." 

Vol.  xiv,  pp.  62  and  63:  "Several  Protestant 
Palatines,  who  arrived  hither  on  Captain  Brown's 
ship,  and  whose  services  have  not  as  yet  been  pur- 
chased, sent  a  complaint,  by  their  interpreter,  to 
the  governor,  that  the  said  Captain  Brown  had  often 
withheld  their  diet  from  them  on  board  his  ship, 
and  that  they  had  been  several  days  without  meat 
or  drink;  particularly  that  last  Friday  they  were 
the  whole  day  without  any,  the  least,  sustenance, 
and  had  been  the  like  for  several  days  before,  and 
not  only  they,  but  all  the  rest  of  the  Germans  that 
still  remain  on  board  Captain  Brown's  ship. 

"  Captain  Brown  being  sent  for  and  interrogated 
whether  he  had  used  those  foreigners  in  the  man- 
ner they  had  represented,  answered,  that  if  they 
had  asked  him  for  food  in  their  language  he  would 
not  have  understood  them. 

"His  Excellency  ordered  the  captain's  steward 
to  be  sent  for,  who  attended  accordingly,  and  the 
original  contract  between  Captain  Brow^n  and 
those  Palatines  in  Holland  was  also  sent  for  and 
laid  before  the  Board,  which  being  read  and  the 
particular  species  of  diet  that  was  allowed  for 
every  day  of  the  week  specified,  his  Excellency 
asked,  in  particular,  if  the  said  Germans  had  been 
fed  last  Friday  in  the  manner  contracted  for? 

"  The  steward  replied  that  the  Germans  would 
sometimes  reserve  the  takins;  of  diet  on  certain 
days  in  order  to  have  double  allowance  another. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  135 

But  his  Excellency  gave  Captain  Brown  to  under- 
stand that  as  he  was  by  virtue  of  his  contract 
bound  to  maintain  those  foreigners  till  they  were 
disposed  of,  if  Siuj  should  die  for  want  while 
aboard  his  ship,  he  must  answer  for  their  lives ; 
after  which  they  withdrew." 

The  accounts  of  the  trials  and  hardships  of  these 
persons,  as  narrated  in  the  Urlsperger  Reports, 
are  entirely  too  numerous  to  be  inserted  in  these 
pages;  those  who  feel  inclined  to  search  for  them- 
selves are  referred  to  the  volume  and  page  of 
those  Reports,  where  they  can  find  all  they  desire 
to  know  concerning  the  Redernptioners.  Vol.  i, 
p.  10;  vol.  ii,  pp.  2472,  2482,  2508.  How  the  Re- 
dernptioners conducted  themselves  can  be  learned 
from  vol.  ii,  pp.  2193,  2200,  2213,  2221,  2404,  2413. 

One  account  is  here  translated  for  the  informa- 
tion of  our  readers.     Vol.  ii,  p.  2472: 

^'The  poor  people  which  Captain  Thomson 
brought  over  with  him  as  servants  for  this  colony 
are  chie%  Palatines  and  Wiirtembergers,  a  whole 
vessel  full  of  men,  women,  and  children;  these 
are  to  be  sold  for  five  years'  service,  but  for  which 
the  inhabitants  have  neither  money  nor  provisions. 
An  adult  person  costs  £6  55.,  sterling.  After  I 
had  preached  to  these  poor  people  from  Rom.  8  : 
28,  they  thronged  around  me  and  besought  me  to 
take  them  to  our  place  (Ebenezer,  Georgia),  but 
which  was  out  of  my  power.  An  old  widow  of 
fifty  years,  who  had  lost  her  husband  at  sea,  and 
who,  on  account  of  her  age,  was  despised  and  neg- 
lected, have  I  besought  General  Oglethorpe  to 
release,  and  sent  her  to  our  Orphan  House." 


136  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

This  was  the  general  condition  of  these  poor 
persons  in  almost  ever}'  seaport  of  America.  The 
following  extracts  indicate  that  many  such  ser- 
vants were  sold  and  located  in  Saxe-Gotha,  and 
after  their  legal  discharge  from  servitude  they  ob- 
tained the  king's  bounty  and  tracts  of  land,  the 
same  as  other  settlers. 

Journal  of  Council,  vol.  xi,  p.  486  :  ^'  Petition  of 
John  Wolfe  and  wife,  natives  of  Berne,  Switzer- 
land, too  poor  to  pay  passage-money,  entered 
into  the  service  of  Anthony  Stack,  of  Saxe-Gotha, 
for  three  years,  being  now  discharged  from  ser- 
vice, prays  for  his  quota  of  land  and  bounty-money. 
Granted,  on  evidence  of  his  written  legal  dis- 
charge." 

VoL  xi,  pp.142  and  143:  ^'Fullix  Smid,  of 
Switzerland,  servant  of  David  Hent,  latelj^  deceas- 
ed, discharged  by  his  executors,  applied  for  and 
received  150  acres  of  land  and  bounty  in  Saxe- 
Gotha." 

It  is  useless  to  multiply  instances,  which  could 
easily  be  done;  these  extracts  will  fully  show  the 
correctness  of  all  the  foregoing  statements,  and 
that  Saxe-Gotha,  with  many  other  settlements,  re- 
ceived her  full  share  of  this  class  of  useful  settlers, 
who  proved  to  have  been  upon  the  whole  a  great 
benefit  to  their  adopted  country. 

During  the  period  that  intervened  between  the 
years  1744  and  1750,  Saxe-Gotha  received  a  large 
influx  of  population,  and  much  of  the  available 
land  of  that  township  was  then  occupied.  The 
vessel  which  bore  them  across  the  ocean  was  the 
ship  St.   Andrew,   Captain   Brown,   commander, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  137 

who  doubtless  treated  his  paying  passengers  well, 
although  he  acted  so  unfeelingly  to  those  who 
were  to  be  sold  for  their  passage-money.  Mention 
is  likewise  made  of  a  Captain  Ham,  who  brought 
other  German  settlers  to  South  Carolina,  but 
whose  passengers  chiefly  located  themselves  in 
Orangeburg,  whilst  others  settled  in  Saxe-Gotha. 

All  these  German  colonists  came  mostly  from 
those  provinces  bordering  on  the  Rhine,  such  as 
Switzerland,  Baden,  the  Palatinate,  and  Wlirtem- 
berg.  They  excelled  as  tillers  of  the  soil,  and 
were  accustomed  to  the  culture  of  the  vine,  and 
thus  they  constituted  the  very  class  of  people 
which  did  become  greatly  serviceable  to  the  pros- 
perity of  Carolina,  but  whose  influence  upon  the 
physical  welfare  of  their  adopted  country  has  been 
as  yet  little  noticed  by  the  various  historians  of 
the  South. 

The  Saxe-Gothans  were  fortunate  and  blessed 
in  obtaining  the  services  of  a  pious  and  faithful 
pastor ;  all  the  records  extant  speak  in  the  strongest 
terms  of  praise  concerning  him,  but,  at  the  same 
time,  all  agree  in  stating  that  he  had  a  hard  life 
of  it,  that  he  was  not  appreciated,  that  he  was 
often  persecuted  for  righteousness'  sake,  and  this 
treatment  he  received  at  the  hands  of  tlie  very 
peopje  for  whose  good  he  labored  and  prayed. 
Two  years  after  the  first  settlers  set  foot  upon  the 
soil  of  Saxe-Gotha,  the  Rev.  Christian  Theus  ar- 
rived and  labored  in  their  midst;  and  as  these 
settlers  were  not  neo-lected  in  the  administration 
of  the  means  of  grace,  which  unfortunately  was 

12 


138  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  case  with  many  otliers  of  the  early  colonists, 
they  really  had  no  excuse  for  their  conduct,  and 
should  have  treated  their  pastor  in  the  most  friendly 
manner. 

Dr.  Muhlenberg's  journal,  published  in  the 
Evangelical  Review,  vol.  i,  p.  540,  contains  the 
following  statement: 

"October  22,  1774.  This  afternoon  I  had  an  ac- 
ceptable visit  from  the  Reformed  minister,  the 
Rev.  Theus,  of  the  Congaries  (Congaree  River), 
in  South  Carolina,  120  miles  from  Charleston. 
His  brother  Theus,  a  painter,  lately  deceased,  re- 
ceived me  as  a  stranger  most  kindly  into  his  house 
when,  thirty-two  years  ago,  I  travelled  through 
here  on  my  journey  from  Savannah  to  Philadel- 
phia, and  aflbrded  me  an  opportunity^  to  preach  on 
Sunday  to  the  then  yet  few  German  families.  The 
Lord  requite  his  love  in  eternity !  The  aforesaid 
pastor,  Theus,  came  with  his  parents  into  this 
country  from  Switzerland  as  a  cancUdatus  iheologice, 
was  examined  and  ordained  by  the  Reverend 
English  Presbyterian  Ministerium,  and  since  1739 
has  performed  the  duties  of  the  ministerial  office 
in  the  scattered  country  congregations  among  the 
German  Reformed  and  Lutheran  inhabitants,  and 
has  conducted  himself  with  the  propriety  and 
fidelity  due  his  station,  according  to  the  testimony 
of  capable  witnesses.  We  had  agreeable  conver- 
sation, and  he  promised  me  a  written  account  of 
church  matters  in  these  country  congregations, 
which,  moreover,  he  is  best  able  to  furnish,  having 
lived  longest  in  this  country,  and  being  an  erudite 
man." 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  139 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  this  ''loriiten  account  of 
church  matierSj'^  if  Dr.  Muhlenberg  ever  received 
it,  has  never  been  published;  what  interesting 
material  it  could  now  furnish  the  Church,  which 
must  forever  be  buried  in  oblivion  ! 

The  Doctor  continues:  "He  also  furnished  me 
with  a  more  detailed  description  of  the  sect  men- 
tioned October  5th,  the  members  living  near  him. 
At  a  certain  time  he  came  unexpectedly  into  their 
meeting,  and  found  Jacob  Weber  contending 
that  he  was  God,  and  the  said  Smith  Peter  (or 
Peter  Schmidt)  insisting  that  he  himself  was 
Christ,  and  that  the  unconverted  members  must 
be  healed  through  his  stripes.  Pastor  Theus,  op- 
posing such  blasphemy,  the  leaders  became  en- 
raged and  threatened  his  life,  and  counselled  with 
the  rabble  whether  to  drown  or  hang  him.  He 
escaped,  however,  from  their  hands,  fled  to  the 
river,  and  fortunately  found  a  negro  with  his  canoe 
at  the  shore,  sprang  into  it,  and  was  conveyed 
across." 

Here  we  have  the  impartial  testimony  of  Rev. 
Dr.  Muhlenberg,  gathered  from  "  capable  wit- 
nesses," of  the  parentage,  ordination,  date  of  min- 
istry in  Saxe-Gotha,  piety  and  learning  of  the 
Eev.  Christian  Theus,  up  to  the  period  immedi- 
ately preceding  the  Kevolution.  This  brief  nar- 
rative, coming  from  such  a  source,  is  not  only  en- 
titled to  our  entire  credit,  but  speaks  as  much  of 
that  devoted  man  of  God  as  though  a  volume  were 
written  to  perpetuate  his  name  and  memory. 

Rev.  Theus  lived  to  be  an  aojed  man,  for  we 


140  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

discover  his  name  in  the  list  of  members  of  the 
"  Corpus  Evangelicum,'^  and  present  at  every  meet- 
ing of  that  body  until  the  year  1789,  the  last  meet- 
ing of  which  the  records  are  still  extant.  How 
much  longer  he  was  spared  to  do  good  we  know 
not;  but  from  the  dates  which  are  in  our  posses- 
sion, he  had  at  that  time  been  half  a  century  in 
the  ministry  of  his  Savior. 

His  resting-place  is  still  pointed  out  to  the 
stranger,  and  is  located  in  a  iield  along  the  state 
road,  between  Columbia  and  Sandy  Run,  about 
eight  miles  from  Columbia.  It  is  the  only  grave 
that  can  still  be  seen  there,  and  tradition  says  that 
his  dwelling  was  located  not  far  from  that  grave- 
yard. Mr.  Abraham  Geiger,  now  also  in  eternity, 
erected  the  tombstone,  at  his  own  expense,  at  the 
head  of  Rev.  Theus'  grave,  to  perpetuate  his  mem- 
ory. Had  Mr.  Geiger  not  performed  this  labor 
of  love,  the  Church  and  the  world  would  never 
even  have  known  where  the  iirst  pastor  of  Saxe- 
Gotha,  the  contemporary  of  Geissendanner,  Bol- 
zius  and  Gronau,  had  been  laid  down  to  rest.  The 
inscription  is  now  much  defaced  by  the  hand  of 
time,  and  can  scarcely  be  deciphered;  nevertheless, 
we  are  thankful  for  this  much,  and  would  wish  that 
we  could  gather  similar  mementoes  of  the  resting- 
places  of  all  the  first  German  ministers  in  the 
South.     The  inscription  reads  as  follows : 

"  This  stone  points  out  where  the  remains  of 
Rev.  Christian  Theus  lie.  This  faithful  divine 
labored  through  a  long  life  as  a  faithful  servant 
in  his  Master's  viueyard,  and  the  reward  which 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  141 

he  received  from  many  for  his  kibor  was  ingrati- 
tude." 

Eev.  J.  B.  Anthon}^,  one  of  the  late  pastors  of 
Sandy  Run  Lutheran  Church,  adds  yet  this  infor- 
mation, published  in  the  Lutheran  Observer,  A.D. 
1858:  "Among  the  octogenarians  of  this  vicinity 
we  have  not  been  able  to  learn  much  more  of  Mr. 
Theus  than  the  rude  stone,  now  standing  in  a 
vast  cotton-field,  records.  Few  now  living  recol- 
lect to  have  seen  him.  No  records  of  those  early 
times  are  known  to  exist.  The  small  school- 
house,  which  is  said  to  have  stood  near  his  grave, 
has  long  since  disappeared.  A  few  other  graves 
are  said  to  be  here,  but  as  no  stones  can  be  found 
in  this  sandy  section  to  place  at  the  head  and  foot, 
light-wood  knots  are  frequently  substituted  by  the 
poor,  hence,  when  these  decay,  there  is  nothing- 
left  to  mark  the  place." 

The  spiritual  and  moral  condition  of  the  Saxe- 
Gothans  is  not  very  highly  extolled  in  the  Urls- 
perger  Reports.  Rev.  Bolzius,  who  gives  us  the 
account,  may  have  been  somewhat  prejudiced,  in- 
asmuch as  his  Ebenezer  colony  had  lost  some 
runaway  white  servants,  who  probably  concealed 
themselves  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Congaree 
River,  and  in  several  pages  of  his  diary  he  berates 
both  the  Saxe-Gothans  and  the  government  of 
South  Carolina  that  they  were  not  returned;  thus, 
perhaps,  his  human  feelings  were  too  much  en- 
listed on  the  side  of  prejudice  and  interest  whilst 
speaking  of  these  people.  We  insert  the  follow- 
ing extract : 


142  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Urlsperger  Reports,  vol.  iv,  p.  672:  "  Weclnes- 
da}^,  April  25,  1750. — The  German  Evangelical 
Lutheran  inhabitants  of  Congaree,  in  South  Caro- 
lina, which  new  settlement  has  been  named  Saxe- 
Gotha,  had  besought  me,  several  months  ago,  to 
come  to  them  and  preach  for  them,  and  admin- 
ister the  Lord's  Supper.  I  sent  them  books  suit- 
able for  the  edification  of  adults  and  the  instruc- 
tion of  children,  and  wrote  them  that  my  circum- 
stances did  not  permit  me  to  make  so  long  a 
journey,  ^ow  I  have  received  another  letter,  in 
which  the  former  request  is  renewed,  and  in  wdiich 
they  likewise  beseech  me  to  assist  them  in  the 
erection  of  a  church  and  in  obtaining  a  pastor. 
They  have  a  congregation  of  about  280  souls,  who 
all  could  attend  church  if  the  house  of  worship 
were  erected  in  the  midst  of  their  plantations. 

"The  Eeformed  have  received  500  pounds, 
Carolina  currency,  from  the  government,  which 
amounts  to  something  more  than  500  guilders, 
for  the  building  of  a  church,  but  no  one  is  in- 
terested for  the  Lutherans,  unless  I  would  do 
something  in  their  behalf.  They  live  with  the 
Reformed  in  great  disunion,  at  which  I  showed 
my  displeasure  in  my  former  letter.  A  few  fami- 
lies have  removed  from  this  place  among  them, 
who  might  have  supported  themselves  very  well 
here;  afterwards  three  adult  youths  were  per- 
suaded to  leave  their  service  here,  and  two  (white) 
servants  ran  awaj^  all  of  whom  are  harbored  in 
the  Congaree  settlement.  The  citizens  them- 
selves, as  a  Carolina    minister   once  wrote    me, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  143 

lived  disorderly  among  each  other,  and  estimate 
their  Reformed  minister  very  low.  I  have  no 
heart  for  this  people.  If  they  were  truly  con- 
cerned about  God's  word,  then  so  many  unworthy 
people  would  not  have  located  in  their  midst,  as 
there  are  other  places  where  good  land  and  sub- 
sistence may  be  obtained. 

"  In  this  very  letter  they  inform  me  that  they 
have  built  both  a  saw-mill  and  a  grist-mill,  and 
expect  to  build  more  of  the  kind.  Why  then 
should  they  be  unable  to  erect  a  house  of  worship 
if  they  were  sincerely  in  earnest?" 

The  above  record  in  Bolzius'  diarj^,  published 
in  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  is  in  strict  accordance 
with  the  testimony  of  Dr.  Ilazelius  on  the  Weber- 
ites — which  sect  arose  some  ten  years  later,— with 
Dr.  Muhlenberg's  account,  with  the  inscription 
on  the  tombstone  on  Rev.  Theus,  and  with  several 
living  witnesses,  who  were  contemporaries  with 
many  old  citizens  of  a  former  day,  whose  narra- 
tives they  still  well  remember. 

Whilst  many  of  the  Saxe-Gothans  were  not 
devoid  of  blame,  and  deserved  censure  in  those 
days,  there  were  others  whose  life  and  conduct 
were  praiseworthy,  and  others  who  were  devotedly 
pious,  and  who  were  anxious  to  enjoy  the  bless- 
ings of  the  means  of  grace,  and  it  is  sad  that  Rev. 
Bolzius  permitted  his  feelings  of  interest  for  his 
own  colony  to  cause  him  to  act  so  unfriendly  to- 
ward this  people,  and  to  send  no  kind  word  of 
encouragement  to  them,  when  they  besought  him 
to  visit  them  and  break  to  their  hungry  souls  the 


144  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

bread  of  life.  Who  knows  what  good  he  might 
have  accomplished  by  a  friendly  visit?  Who 
knows  what  future  evil,  e.  g.^  that  Weber  heresy, 
he  might  have  been  the  instrument  of  preventing? 
Besides  all  this,  he,  as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel 
and  of  like  persuasion  with  these  people,  had  no 
right  to  withhold  his  influence  and  sympath}^  from 
two  hioidred  and  eighty  souls,  (we  are  surprised  at  so 
large  a  number)  who  extended  such  a  Macedonian 
call  to  him,  and  besought  him  twice  to  interest 
himself  in  their  behalf  in  procuring  a  minister 
for  them,  who  were  almost  as  sheep  w^ithout  a 
shepherd.  Who  could  calculate  the  influence  the 
Lutheran  Church  would  have  exerted  in  those 
regions,  had  this  large  congregation  been  properly 
cared  for,  and  supplied  with  the  means  of  grace  ? 
Besides,  had  Rev.  Bolzius  been  instrumental  in 
securing  a  pious  and  efiicient  pastor  for  them  at 
that  early  period,  and  this  pastor,  laboring  side 
by  side  with  Rev.  Theus,  how  much  that  faithful 
servant's  hands  would  have  been  strengthened, 
and  how  much  good  seed  might  have  been  sown, 
springing  up  to  everlasting  life,  which  would 
have  entirelj'  changed  the  spiritual  and  moral 
condition  of  this  people.  Deprive  men  of  the 
Gospel  and  the  Sacraments,  take  away  or  refuse 
to  give  them  the  benign  influences  of  Christianity, 
and  we  need  not  be  astonished  at  *' disorderly 
living"  and  heresy  in  doctrine. 

Another  Lutheran  minister  in  South  Carolina 
at  this  time,  A.D.  1750,  and  one  of  the  right  char- 
acter, Rev.  Giessendanner  being  then  in  Orange- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  145 

biirg,  who,  ill  that  event,  might  have  remained 
in  the  Lutheran  Church,  with  the  three  Eben- 
e^er  pastors  in  Georgia,  these  five  might  have 
formed  the  nucleus  for  a  Lutheran  Synod  in  tlie 
South,  almost  as  old  as  the  Pennsylvania  Synod, 
which  could  have  instructed  and  ordained  other 
pious  men  for  the  Gospel  ministr3^  At  a  later 
date  the  pastors  of  other  established  Lutheran 
congregations  would  have  connected  themselves 
with  this  Synod;  their  synodical  reports  sent  to 
the  city  of  Augsburg,  in  Germany,  would  have 
made  the  Urlsperger  Reports  as  interesting  in  its 
records  of  Church  affairs,  as  the  Halle  reports  are 
now,  filled,  as  they  are,  with  general  accounts  of 
Church  matters  in  the  entire  Province  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  not  simply  the  detailed  accounts  of 
daily  occurrences  in  a  single  settlement.  What 
short-sighted  people  even  the  most  pious  ministers 
of  the  Gospel  sometimes  are! 

The  present  citizens  of  old  Saxe-Gotha,  now 
Lexington  County,  are  an  entirely  diflTerent  people; 
their  forefathers  could  not  prevent  unworthy  set- 
tlers from  locating  themselves  among  them.  Many 
of  those  depraved  men  met  an  untimely  death  in 
the  war  with  the  Cherokees;  a  few  perished  miser- 
ably at  the  hand  of  administrative  justice;  others 
were  cut  ofi:'by  disease  and  an  early  death;  whilst 
a  number  moved  to  other  parts  of  the  country. 
It  is  exceedingly  doubtful  whether  many  of  those 
reprobates  left  their  descendants  behind  them  in 
Saxe-Gotha,  as  all  traces  of  Weber  and  Schmidt 
have  entirely  disappeared. 

13 


146  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

We  have  seen  that  Rev.  Theus  came  to  the 
Coiigaree  settlement  in  the  year  1739.  In  what 
building  he  first  preached  is  unknown,  but  ar- 
rangements were  soon  made  for  the  erection  of  a 
church.  As  early  as  1744-5  John  Jacob  Kiemen- 
sperger  petitioned  the  government  of  South  Car- 
olina to  do  something  toward  the  erection  of 
churches  and  school-houses  for  the  German  set- 
tlers in  various  localities;  otherwise  they  would 
continue  to  do  what  many  had  done  heretofore, 
move  with  their  families  to  Pennsylvania,  where 
all  these  advantages  could  be  enjoyed.  That  the 
government  entered  into  such  an  arrangement  we 
have  already  seen  from  the  Urlsperger  Reports, 
for  five  hundred  pounds  currency  was  donated 
for  the  building  of  a  German  Reformed  Church, 
v^^hich,  we  presume,  had  been  completed  at  that 
time,  A.D.  1750,  and  the  people  were  enjoying 
the  means  of  grace  in  their  new  house  of  worship. 
Tradition  informs  us  that  this  German  church 
stood  near  the  spot  where  the  remains  of  Rev. 
Theus  are  deposited,  but  it  has  long  since  been 
no  more.  We  now  turn  to  an  ancient  map  of 
South  Carolina,  originally  published  in  1771  and 
1775,  and  recently  reprinted  in  ^'  Carroll's  Collec- 
tions." Near  the  Congaree  River,  a  short  distance 
below  the  confluence  of  the  Saluda  and  Broad 
Rivers,  and  in  the  township  of  Saxe-Gotha,  a 
church  is  laid  down,  bearing  the  name  St.  John's. 
This  substantiates  all  the  above-mentioned  records 
and  traditions,  gives  us  the  exact  locality  of  that 
church,  which,  in  the  proper  proportion  of  dis- 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  147 

tances,  would  be  the  very  spot  where  the  grave 
of  Rev.  Theus  can  still  be  seen,  and  furnishes, 
furthermore,  the  name  by  which  that  church  was 
known.  This  house  of  God  must  have  been  de- 
stroyed during  the  Revolutionary  War,  as  all 
traces  of  the  same  after  that  period  appear  to 
have  been  lost;  it  is  not  mentioned  in  the  general 
act  of  incorporation  of  all  the  German  churches, 
passed  by  the  legislature  of  South  Carolina  in 
1788. 

During  the  years  1759  and  1760,  the  people  of 
Saxe-Gotha  suffered  greatly  from  the  ravages  of 
the  Cherokee  war.  During  the  time  that  the 
French  and  English  were  at  war  with  each  other 
in  the  colonies  of  America,  which  however  did 
not  reach  as  far  south  as  the  Carolinas;  the  French 
instigated  the  Cherokee  Indians  to  make  war  upon 
the  peaceful  settlers  of  the  two  Carolinas,  who 
murdered  the  white  inhabitants  at  midnight,  whilst 
they  were  wrapped  in  their  peaceful  slumbers,  and 
committed  atrocities  at  which  humanity  shudders. 
The  Congaree  and  Fork  settlements  were  then 
mostly  exposed  to  the  fearful  inroads  of  the  sav- 
ages, as  but  few  settlers  were  living  further  in 
the  interior  than  the  Germans  were  at  that  time. 
Bolzius  informs  us,  that  many  were  compelled 
to  take  refuge  among  the  Germans  at  Ebenezer 
and  Savannah,  whilst  others  fled  for  safety  to 
Charleston,  Purysburg,  and  other  places,  until 
those  Indian  hostilities  were  ended,  and  peace 
and  security  was  again  restored. 


148  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Section  12.   The  German  Settlers  from.  Pennsylvania 
in  Central  North  Carolina,  A.D.  1750. 

Had  a  traveller  from  Pennsylvania  visited,  about 
forty  or  fifty  years  ago,  portions  of  the  present 
counties  of  Alamance,  Guilford,  Davidson,  Rowan, 
Cabarrus,  Stanly,  Iredell,  Catawba,  Lincoln  and 
some  others  in  the  State  of  Xorth  Carolina,  he 
might  have  believed  himself  to  have  unexpectedly 
come  upon  some  part  of  the  old  Keystone  State. 
His  ear  would  have  been  greeted  with  sounds  of 
the  peculiar  dialect  of  the  Pennsylvania-German 
language,  familiarly  known  as  "  Pennsylvanisch- 
Deutsch,"  a  language  made  up  of  the  dialects 
used  in  the  ancient  Palatinate,  Wlirtemberg  and 
other  countries  bordering  along  the  Rhine,  inter- 
mixed with  English  words,  which  plainly  indicate 
that  many  of  their  forefathers  were  some  of  those 
Protestant  refugees,  who  fled  from  the  persecutions 
of  Louis  XIY,  king  of  France,  and  were  brought 
to  America  under  the  kind  and  fostering  care  of 
Queen  Anne  of  England. 

This  language,  however,  has  almost  become  ex- 
tinct in  E^orth  Carolina;  a  few  aged  persons  may 
still  be  found,  who  are  fond  of  conversing  in  that 
kind  of  German  with  those  who  are  acquainted 
with  it,  but  in  a  few  more  years  the  last  vestige  of 
Pennsylvania-German  will  be  sought  for  in  vain 
in  this  State,  where  once  even  many  of  the  negro 
slaves  of  these  Germans  spoke  no  other  language. 

Family  names  are  to  be  met  with  in  this  section 
of  J^orth  Carolina,  which  are  familiar  in  Mont- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  149 

gomerj,  Berks,  Lehigh  and  :Jsrorthampton  Coun- 
ties of  Pennsylvania,  such  as  the  Propsts,  the 
Bostians,  the  Kleins  (Cline),  the  Trexlers,  the 
Schloughs,  the  Seitzs  (Sides),  the  Reinhardts,  the 
Bibers  (Beaver),  the  Kohlmans  (Coleman),  the 
Derrs  (Dry),  the  Bergers  (Barrier),  the  Behringers 
(Barringer),  and  many  others  still  abounding  both 
in  Pennsylvania  and  North  Carolina. 

Our  supposed  traveller  might  have  worshiped 
on  Sundays  in  churches,  where  the  services  were 
still  conducted  entirely  in  the  German  language, 
in  which  both  the  Lutheran  and  German  Reformed 
had  equal  rights  and  privileges,  and  each  denomi- 
nation alternately  worshiped  therein,  as  is  still 
the  case  in  many  parts  of  Pennsylvania.  The 
ever-present  "  Gemainshaftliches  Gesangbuch " 
(union  hymn-book)  suited  to  the  taste,  at  that 
time,  of  both  denominations,  would  have  been 
found  in  general  use;  and,  at  the  centre  of  one  of 
the  long  sides  of  the  church,  there  would  have 
stood  the  high  and  goblet-shaped  pulpit,  with  a 
sounding-board  suspended  overhead  of  the  officia- 
ting minister;  a  few  such  shaped  pulpits  may  be 
seen  in  this  State  to  the  present  day,  but  they  will 
soon  be  numbered  w^ith  the  past. 

The  farm-yard  of  these  Germans  still  abounds 
with  fine  and  well-fed  horses,  and  the  old  Penn- 
sylvania four-horse  wagon  securely  housed  in  the 
shed  between  two  corn-cribs,  with  the  bow-shaped 
body  suspended  above  it  upon  chains,  read}^  to  be 
let  down  in  its  position  on  the  wagon,  whenever  it 
should  be  needed. 


150  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

In  tbe  . dwelling-house,  and  behind  a  cheerful 
wood-fire,  during  the  winter  season,  one  might  still 
notice  a  heavy  iron  plate  placed  upon  the  hearth 
to  protect  the  back  of  tbe  chimney,  having  singular 
devices  cast  upon  its  face,  such  as  no  ironworks  of 
modern  times  are  known  to  mould,  with  German 
sentences  and  ^'Redting  Furniss"  (Reading  Fur- 
nace) standing  out  in  relief,  indicating  that  they 
w^ere  cast  in  the  city  of  Reading,  Berks  County,  at 
a  time  when  those  extensive  iron  manufactories  of 
Pennsylvania  were  yet  in  their  infancy,  and  per- 
haps brought  along  to  North  Carolina  with  the 
emigrants  from  the  Keystone  State. 

On  the  blank  pages  of  the  old  German  Bibles  of 
those  first  German  settlers  of  North  Carolina,  we 
may  frequently  find  the  story  of  their  colonization, 
stating  that  they  were  born  in  Pennsylvania  at 
such  a  date,  and  that  they  emigrated  to  North 
Carolina  and  settled  in  such  a  county  of  that 
Province.  Besides,  all  the  aged  citizens  of  that 
section,  where  the  German  descendants  are  located, 
will  tell  you  that  their  ancestors  came  originally 
from  Pennsylvania,  and  here  and  there  you  may 
meet  a  family,  like  the  Heilig  family,  who  still 
keep  up  a  friendly  intercourse  with  some  of  their 
relatives  in  Pennsylvania. 

The  conclusion  then  evidently  is,  in  the  absence 
of  all  State  documents  on  that  subject,  and  the 
silence  of  all  historians  of  North  Carolina,  that 
the  Province  of  Pennsylvania,  and  not  Germany, 
furnished  North   Carolina  with  the  most  of  her 


m   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  151 

nnmerons  German  settlers,  located  in  the  central 
and  western  part  of  the  State. 

The  cause  of  their  migration  from  Pennsylvania 
to  North  Carolina  may  be  found  recorded  in  Wil- 
liamson's History  of  N'orth  Carolina,  vol.  ii,  p.  71, 
which,  however,  he  applies  only  to  their  neighbors, 
the  Scotch-Irish  settlers :  ^'  Land  could  not  be  ob- 
tained in  Pennsylvania  without  much  difficulty, 
for  the  proprietors  of  that  Province  purchased  the 
soil  by  small  parcels  from  the  natives,  and  those 
lands  were  soon  taken  up;"  and  at  that  early 
period  no  one  ventured  to  cross  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  for  the  purpose  of  settling  there,  so 
the  seekers  after  new  homes  went  southward  in- 
stead of  westward,  and  kept  to  the  east  of  the 
range  of  the  Alleghanies,  until  they  found  unoc- 
cupied lands  where  they  could  make  their  settle- 
ments. Williamson  informs  us,  vol.  ii,  p.  71, 
that  "Lord  Carteret's  land  in  Carolina,  where  the 
soil  was  cheap,  presented  a  tempting  residence  to 
people  of  every  denomination." 

The  eastern  portion  of  I^orth  Carolina  having 
been  settled  at  an  early  date  by  various  colonies 
of  English,  Swiss,  and  German  Palatines  at  New- 
berne,  French  Huguenots,  and  Scotch  refugees, 
and  these  colonies  having,  in  process  of  time, 
located  their  descendants  as  far  inland  as  Hills- 
boro  on  the  northern  side  of  the  Province,  and  the 
Pedee  River  on  the  southern  side,  with  a  number 
of  Quakers  and  Scotch-Irish  among  tliem;  an  en- 
tirely new  class  of  colonists,  the  Germans  from 
the  Province  of  Pennsylvania,  as  above  described, 


152  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

arranged  themselves  on  vacant  lands  to  the  east- 
ward and  westward  of  the  Yadkin  River,  wliilst 
the  Scotch-Irish  from  the  same  Province,  who  had 
always  lived  on  friendly  terms  with  their  German 
neighbors  in  Pennsylvania,  soon  followed  them 
southward,  and  occupied  vacant  lands  mostly  to 
the  westward  of  the  German  settlers,  along  both 
sides  of  the  Catawba  River;  these  again,  Germans 
and  Scotch-Irish,  at  a  later  day,  formed  settlements 
of  their  descendants  in  the  w^estern  part  of  the 
State.  This  is  the  brief  story  of  the  settling  of 
North  Carolina;  the  different  European  nationali- 
ties from  which  these  settlers  originated,  occupy- 
ing strips  of  land  across  the  State  mostly  in  a 
southwesterly  direction,  like  so  many  strata  of  a 
geological  formation. 

The  Pennsylvania  Germans  journeyed  in  much 
the  same  manner  as  did  the  later  colonists  to  the 
Western  States,  before  railroads  afforded  a  cheaper, 
safer  and  more  speedy  mode  of  transportation ; 
every  available  article  for  house  and  farm  use, 
capable  of  being  stowed  awaj'  in  their  capacious 
wagons,  was  taken  with  them;  and  then  the  caval- 
cade moved  on,  every  able-bodied  person  on  foot, 
women  and  children  on  bedding  in  the  wagons, 
and  cattle,  sheep,  and  hogs  driven  before  them ; 
they  travelled  by  easy  stages,  upon  the  roads  of 
the  picturesque  Cumberland  and  Shenandoah 
Valleys,  crossing  the  Bhie  Ridge  Mountains  in 
some  part  of  Virginia,  until  they  reached  the  land 
of  their  hopes  and  promise. 

It  is  impossible  to  date  precisely  the  arrival  ot 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  153 

all  those  German  colonists  from  Pennsylvania,  as 
they  all  depended  upon  themselves  for  leaving 
home  and  journeying  southward;  they  arrived 
continuously  for  a  number  of  years  in  succession, 
usually  leaving  home  in  the  fall  season,  after  all  the 
harvesting  was  over  and  the  proceeds  of  the  year's 
labor  could  be  disposed  of;  they  arrived  at  their 
places  of  settlement  just  before  the  commencement 
of  the  winter  season.  The  first  arrival  of  the 
pioneer  train  may  have  occurred  about  the  year 
1745,  but  the  large  bodj^  of  these  German  colonists 
did  not  commence  to  settle  in  ITorth  Carolina  until 
about  the  year  1750;  this  may  be  gathered  partly 
from  tradition,  partly  from  old  family  records  in 
their  German  Bibles,  but  mostly  from  the  title- 
deeds  of  their  lands,  which  were  always  dated 
some  years  after  their  actual  settlement,  affording 
them  time  to  decide  upon  a  permanent  location, 
and  to  make  some  other  necessary  arrangement, 
having  to  run  no  risk  in  losing  their  titles  by  the 
delay  of  a  few  years. 

These  German  settlers  were  all  industrious, 
economical,  and  thrifty  farmers,  not  afraid  nor 
ashamed  of  hard  labor,  and  were  soon  blessed 
with  an  abundance  of  everything,  which  the  fertile 
soil  and  temperate  climate  of  that  portion  of  N'orth 
Carolina  could  furnish  them.  As  they  were  all 
agriculturists,  they  generally  avoided  settling 
themselves  in  towns;  uninformed  in  the  ways  of 
the  world,  ignorant  of  the  English  language,  and 
unacquainted  with  the  shrewdness  necessary  for 
merchandising,  yet  well   informed  in   their  own 


154  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

language,  and  well  read  in  tlieir  Bibles  and  other 
devotional  German  books,  they  remained  at  their 
own  country  homes,  and  enriched  themselves  with 
the  productions  of  the  soil;  hence  we  witness  the 
fact,  that  very  few  Lutheran  and  German  Reformed 
churches  were  erected  in  the  towns  of  North  Car- 
olina at  that  early  da}-;  and  when,  in  process  of 
time,  it  did  become  necessary  to  build  churches  in 
the  villages  and  towns  of  the  State,  it  was  found 
exceedingly  difficult  to  get  the  members  from  the 
country  to  become  accustomed  to  the  new  ar- 
rangement. 

Inasmuch  as  these  settlers  located  themselves 
so  gradually,  as  before  stated,  besides  being  di- 
vided into  two  denominations,  it  was  some  time 
before  they  were  sufficiently  numerous  to  have  a 
pastor  located  and  permanently  settled  among 
them :  sermons  and  prayers  were  usually  read  on 
Sunday  by  their  German  school-teacher,  and  when- 
ever they  were  permitted  to  enjoy  the  regular  ad- 
ministration of  the  preached  w^ord  and  sacraments, 
which  was  but  seldom,  it  was  afforded  them  by 
some  self-appointed  missionary,  whilst  their  school- 
teacher usually  buried  their  dead  with  an  appro- 
priate ceremony  from  the  German  liturgy,  and,  in 
case  of  urgent  necessity,  baptized  their  children. 

Section  13.   The  Moravians  at  Salem^  N.  C.,. 
A.D.  1753. 

The  first  colony  of  Moravians  settled  in  Georgia 
in  the  year  1735,  under  the  leadership  of  Rt.  Rev.  A. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  155 

G.  Spaiigeiiberg,  a  bishop  in  the  Moravian  Church, 
or  "  Uiiitas  Fratrum,"  as  that  Church  is  sometimes 
called.  This  new  colony  came  one  year  later  than 
the  first  arrival  of  the  Lutheran  Salzburgers  at 
Ebenezer,  Georgia,  and  located  itself  between 
Savannah  and  Ebenezer.  The  Moravians,  how- 
ever, did  not  remain  long  in  Georgia;  in  1737  a 
war  broke  out  between  the  English  colonies  and 
the  Spaniards,  who  believed  themselves  aggrieved 
bv  the  colonization  of  Geors^ia  under  Eno^lish 
government,  and  regarded  it  as  an  encroachment 
upon  their  territory ;  this  war  was  renewed  in 
1739,  and  the  Moravians,  who  were  conscientiously 
opposed  to  taking  up  arms,  were  nevertheless 
compelled  to  do  so,  contrary  to  the  promise  made 
them,  that  they  should  be  exempt  from  military 
service;  hence  they  believed  themselves  necessi- 
tated to  abandon  houses  and  lands  in  Georgia,  and 
removed  to  Pennsylvania,  in  1738  and  1740,  the 
peaceful  government  of  the  Quakers  in  that  Prov- 
ince being  well  suited  to  their  conscientious 
scruples  against  war.  Here  the  Moravians  now  be- 
gan their  settlements  at  Bethlehem  and  Nazareth, 
and  likewise  their  missions  among  the  Indians  in 
different  parts  of  Pennsylvania  and  'New  Yorlc. 

In  the  year  1751,  the  Moravians  were  induced 
to  purchase  one  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land 
in  IN'orth  Carolina,  from  Lord  Granville,  President 
of  the  Privy  Council  of  the  goverimient  of  Great 
Britain  ;  Bishop  Spangenberg  was  commissioned 
to  locate  and  survey  this  large  tract  of  land,  and 
journeyed  with  some  friends,  during  the  month  of 


156  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

August,  from  Bethlehem,  Pennsylvania,  to  Eden- 
ton,  North  Carolina,  where  he  was  accompanied 
by  the  surveyor-general,  and  at  first  attempted  to 
locate  the  tract  towards  tlie  head-waters  of  the 
Catawba,  ISTew  and  Yadkin  Rivers,  but  sufl:ered 
so  much  from  sickness,  cold  and  hunger,  that 
they  retraced  their  steps,  and  located  the  tract 
farther  eastward,  in  the  present  county  of  Forsyth, 
to  the  east  of  the  Yadkin  River.  The  general 
deed  for  the  whole  tract,  containing  98,985  acres, 
was  signed  and  sealed  August  7th,  1753,  and  re- 
ceived the  name  of  "  The  Wachovia  Tract,''  in 
honor  of  one  of  the  titles  of  Count  Zinzendorf, 
who  was  lord  of  the  Wachau  Valley  in  Austria, 
and  the  founder  and  head  of  the  Moravian  Society 
under  its  present  new  organization. 

The  sources  w^hence  the  above  information  is 
principally  derived  are  the  Urlsperger  Reports, 
Life  of  Bishop  Spangenberg,  and  Martin's  History 
of  North  Carolina,  but  the  following  continued 
narrative  is  copied  from  Martin's  History,  Vol. 
I,  pp.  28-30,  et  seq.j  of  the  Appendix. 

"  In  order  to  facilitate  the  improvement  of  the 
land,  to  furnish  a  part  of  the  purchase-money,  and 
to  defray  the  expenses  of  transportation,  journey, 
&c.,  of  the  first  colonists,  a  society  was  formed, 
under  the  name  of  TheWachovia  Society,  consisting 
of  members  of  the  Brethren's  church  and  other 
friends.  The  directors  of  it  were  Bishop  Spangen- 
berg and  Cornelius  Van  Laer,  a  gentleman  resid- 
ing in  Holland.  The  members  of  it,  who  were 
about  twenty,  received  in  consideration  for  the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  157 

money  which  they  advanced,  two  thousand  acres 
of  the  land.  This  society  was  again  dissolved  in 
1763,  having  proved  very  beneficial  and  answered 
the  intended  purpose. 

"  In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1753,  the  first  colo- 
nists, twelve  single  brethren  or  unmarried  men, 
came  from  Bethlehem  to  settle  upon  the  land. 
They  had  a  wagon,  six  horses,  cattle,  and  the  neces- 
sary household  furniture  and  utensils  for  husbandry 
with  them.  After  a  very  tedious  and  fatiguing 
journey,  by  way.  of  Winchester,  Evan's  Gap,  and 
Upper  Sauratown,  on  which  they  spent  six  wrecks, 
they  arrived  on  the  land  the  17th  of  November, 
1753,  and  took  possession  of  it.  A  small  deserted 
cabin,  which  they  found  near  the  mill  creek,  served 
them  for  a  shelter  or  dwelling-house  the  first  win- 
ter. On  the  spot  where  this  cabin  stood,  a  monu- 
ment was  erected  in  the  year  1806,  with  the  in- 
scription, Wachovia  8eiilement,  begun  (he  17th  Novem- 
ber, 1753.  They  immediately  began  to  clear  some 
acres  of  land,  and  to  sow  it  with  wheat.  In  the 
year  1754,  seven  new  colonists,  likewise  single 
brethren,  came  from  Bethlehem.  It  was  resolved, 
that  on  the  same  spot  where  the  first  settlers  had 
made  already  a  small  improvement,  a  town  should 
be  built,  which  was  named  Beihabara  (the  house 
of  passage),  as  it  was  meant  only  for  a  place  of  so- 
journing for  a  time,  till  the  principal  town  in  the 
middle  of  the  whole  tract  could  be  built  at  a  con- 
venient time.  Bishop  Bohler,  who  was  here  on 
a  visit  from  Bethlehem,  laid,  on  the  26th  of  ITo- 
vember,  the  corner-stone  for  the  first  house  in 


158  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

this  towu,  which  was  appointed  for  a  church  and 
dwelling-house  of  the  single  brethren,  with  praj-er 
and  supplication  to  our  Lord  that  he  might  pros- 
per the  work.  He  likewise  examined  more  accu- 
rately the  greatest  part  of  the  Wachovia  tract, 
divided  it  into  proper  parts  for  improvement,  and 
gave  names  to  several  creeks,  which  are  3'et  some- 
times used,  and  are  to  be  found  in  deeds  and  pub- 
lic records. 

"  In  Ma}',  1755,  Bishop  David  [NTitschmann  came 
on  a  visit  from  Bethlehem,  and  on  the  11th  of  the 
same  month  the  first  meeting-house  was  conse- 
crated, which  solemn  transaction  was  attended 
with  a  gracious  feeling  of  the  divine  presence. 
Many  travellers  and  neighbors  have  heard  after- 
wards, in  this  house,  the  word  of  life  with  joy  and 
gratitude. 

"In  the  year  1758,  the  Cherokees  and  Cataw- 
bas,  who  went  to  war  against  the  Indians  on  the 
Ohio,  often  marched  through  Bethabara  in  large 
companies,  sometimes  several  hundreds  at  once, 
and  the  Brethren  were  obliged  to  find  them  quar- 
ters and  provisions  for  several  days.  The  Chero- 
kees were  much  pleased  with  the  treatment  they 
received,  and  gave  to  their  nation  the  following 
description  of  Bethabara :  The  Dutch  fort,  where 
there  are  good  jpeople  and  much  bread. 

"In  1759,  the  town  of  Bethany  was  laid  out, 
three  miles  north  of  Bethabara,  on  Muddy  Creek, 
and  divided  into  thirty  lots  ;  and  at  the  end  of  the 
year  1765,  the  number  of  inhabitants  in  Bethabara 
was  eighty-eight,  and  in  Bethany  seventy-eight. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  159 

"In  the  year  1766,  the  beginning  was  made  to 
build  Salem,  the  principal  settlement  of  iheUuiias 
Firitrum  in  North  Carolina,  live  miles  to  the  south- 
east from  Bethabara.  Hitherto,  all  the  brethren 
and  sisters  who  settled  in  Korth  Carolina  came 
from  Pennsylvania,  but  in  this  year  the  first  com- 
pany, consisting  of  ten  persons,  came  from  Ger- 
many by  way  of  London  and  Charleston.  Salem 
was  laid  out  the  year  previous  by  Frederick  Wil- 
liam von  Marshall,  senior  civilis  of  the  Unitas 
Fratrum.  It  was  resolved  that  Salem  should  be 
built  in  the  same  manner  and  have  the  same  reo^u- 
lations  as  Herrnhut,  Niesky,  Bethlehem,  and 
other  settlements  of  the  United  Brethren,  wherein 
the  unmarried  men  and  boys,  and  the  unmarried 
women  and  girls  live  in  separate  houses  by  them- 
selves. The  house  for  the  unmarried  men  or  sin- 
gle brethren  was  built  in  the  years  1768  and  1769." 

Two  other  settlements  were  made  on  the  Wa- 
chovia Tract,  named  Friedburg  and  Friedland, 
during  the  years  1769  and  1770,  each  having  their 
own  meeting-house  and  school,  which  received  a 
considerable  number  of  settlers  from  Germany 
and  from  that  part  of  Massachusetts  which  is 
now  the  State  of  Maine.  Another  settlement  re- 
ceived its  name,  Hope,  and  was  made  in  1772,  by 
colonists  from  Frederick  County,  Maryland. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War,  the  Moravians 
again  suffered  severely  on  account  of  their  pecu- 
liar principles  not  to  take  up  arms  personally,  and 
were  obliged  at  times  to  pay  large  amounts  of 
money   for   substitutes  for   all   those   who   were 


160  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

drafted  as  recruits  for  the  American  army,  but 
were,  at  last,  exempted  from  military  service  by 
taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  and  fidelity  to  the 
State  of  Carolina  and  the  United  States,  and  pay 
a  triple  tax,  which  they  accordingly  did,  and  re- 
mained unmolested. 

"  About  eight  miles  above  the  Hope  meeting- 
house, and  ten  miles  from  Salem,  on  the  west  side 
of  Muddy  Creek,  a  meeting-house  was  built  in 
1782,  by  a  German  Lutheran  and  Reformed  con- 
gregation, wherein,  since  the  year  1797,  divine 
service  is  held  by  one  of  the  ministers  of  the 
Brethren's  church,  every  fourth  Sunday,  in  the 
German  language." 

In  the  year  1804,  the  well-known  Salem  Female 
Academj^  was  founded.  The  building  was  com- 
menced the  year  previous,  and  has  educated  a 
large  proportion  of  the  matrons  and  daughters  of 
the  Southern  States.  "  From  the  beginning  of 
the  institution,  in  May,  1804,  to  the  end  of  the 
year  1807,  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  young 
ladies,  from  North  and  South  Carolina,  Virginia, 
Kentucky,  Tennessee,  and  Georgia,  received  their 
education  in  it,  of  whom,  at  the  end  of  1807, 
forty-one  remained  in  the  Seminary." 

This  narrative  of  the  Moravian  settlement  in 
and  around  Salem,  I^orth  Carolina,  has  been  in- 
cluded in  this  history,  because  it  is  also  a  German 
settlement,  and  was  established  bj^  a  religious  de- 
nomination near  akin  to  the  Lutheran  Church,  with 
the  Augsburg  Confession  as  the  basis  of  their 
faith.     Besides  two  of  the  ministers,  connected 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  161 

with  tlie  Lutheran  Synod  of  ^N'orth  Carolina,  came 
from  this  settlement  of  Moravians:  the  Kev.  Gott- 
lieb Shober,  ordained  by  the  Lutheran  Synod  of 
North  CaroUna  in  1810,  and  who  labored  in  some 
Lutheran  churches  in  the  vicinity  of  Salem,  N".  C, 
but  who  also  retained  in  some  way  his  connec- 
tion with  the  Moravians,  residing  all  his  life  in 
Salem ;  and  the  Rev.  S.  Rothrock,  still  living 
and  doing  good  service  in  the  ITorth  Carolina 
Synod. 


Section  H.  The  German  Lutheran  Colony  at  Hard 
Labor  Creek ^  Abbeville  County^  South  Carolina^ 
A.n.  1763  and  1764., 

A  few  years  before  the  Revolutionary  War, 
there  occurred  a  most  interesting  instance  of  Ger- 
man colonization,  which  added  greatly  to  the 
growth  and  strength  of  the  Province  of  South 
Carolina,  and  which,  likewise,  ought  to  have  con- 
tributed much  to  the  'permanent  establishment  of 
one  or  more  Lutheran  churches  in  that  vicinity; 
however,  the  facts,  as  taken  from  He  watt's  His- 
tory of  South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  vol.  ii,  pp. 
269-272,  will  speak  for  themselves. 

''Not  long  after  this,  during  the  years  1763  and 
1764,  a  remarkable  affair  happened  in  Germany, 
by  which  Carolina  received  a  great  acquisition. 
One  Stlimpel,  who  had  been  an  officer  in  the  king 
of  Prussia's  service  (Frederick  the  Great)  being 
reduced  at  the  peace  (after  the  close  of  the  Seven 
Years'  War)  applied  to  the  British  ministry  for  a 

14 


162  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

tract  of  land  in  America,  and,  having  received 
some  encouragement,  returned  to  Germany,  where 
by  deceitful  promises,  he  seduced  between  ^ve  or 
six  hundred  ignorant  people  from  their  native 
country. 

''When  these  poor  Palatines  arrived  in  Eng- 
land, the  officer,  finding  himself  unable  to  perform 
his  promises,  fled,  leaving  them  in  a  strange  land 
without  money,  without  friends,  exposed  in  the 
open  fields,  and  ready  to  perish  through  want. 
While  they  were  in  this  starving  condition,  and 
knew  no  person  to  whom  the}^  could  apply  for 
relief,  a  humane  clergyman,  who  came  from  the 
same  countrj^,  took  compassion  on  them,  and  pub- 
lished their  deplorable  case  in  the  newspapers. 
He  pleaded  for  the  mercy  and  protection  of  gov- 
ernment to  them,  until  an  opportunity  might  ofier 
of  transporting  them  to  some  of  the  British  col- 
onies, where  he  hoped  they  would  prove  to  be 
useful  subjects,  and,  in  time,  give  their  benefactors 
ample  proofs  of  their  gratitude  and  afiection. 

"1^0  sooner  did  their  unhappy  situation  reach 
the  ears  of  a  great  personage,  than  he  immedi- 
ately set  an  example  to  his  subjects,  which  served 
both  to  Vv^arm  their  hearts  and  open  their  hands 
for  the  relief  of  their  distressed  fellow-creatures. 
A  bounty  of  three  hundred  pounds  sterling  was 
allowed  them;  tents  were  ordered  from  the  Tower 
for  the  accommodation  of  such  as  had  paid  their 
passage  and  been  permitted  t©  come  ashore; 
money  was  sent  for  the  relief  of  those  that  were 
confined  on  board. 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  163 

"  The  public-spirited  citizens  of  London,  famous 
for  acts  of  beneficence  and  charity,  associated,  and 
chose  a  committee  on  purpose  to  raise  money  for 
the  relief  of  these  poor  Palatines.  A  physician, 
a  surgeon,  and  a  man-midwife,  generously  under- 
took to  attend  the  sick  gratis.  From  different 
quarters  benefactions  were  sent  to  the  committee, 
and  in  a  few  da3^s  those  unfortunate  strangers, 
from  the  depths  of  indigence  and  distress,  were 
raised  to  comfortable  circumstances.  The  com- 
mittee, finding  the  money  received  more  than 
sufficient  to  relieve  their  present  distress^,  applied 
to  his  Majesty  (George  III),  to  know  his  royal 
pleasure  with  respect  to  the  future  disposal  of  the 
German  Protestants.  His  Majesty,  sensible  that 
his  Colony  of  South  Carolina  had  not  its  propor- 
tion of  white  inhabitants,  and  having  expressed 
a  particular  attachment  to  it,  signified  his  desire 
of  transporting  them  to  that  Province.  Another 
motive  for  sending  them  to  Carolina,  was  the 
bounty  allowed  to  foreign  Protestants  by  the  Pro- 
vincial Assembly,  so  that  when  their  source  of 
relief  from  England  should  be  exhausted,  another 
would  open  after  their  arrival  in  that  Province, 
which  would  help  them  to  surmount  the  difficul- 
ties attending  the  first  state  of  cultivation. 

**  Accordingly,  preparations  were  made  for  send- 
ing the  Germans  to  South  Carolina.  When  the 
news  was  communicated  to  them,  they  rejoiced, 
not  only  because  they  were  to  go  to  one  of  the 
most  fertile  and  flourishing  Provinces  on  the  con- 
tinent, but  also  because  many  of  them  had  friends 


164  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

and  countrymen  there  before  them.  Two  ships, 
of  two  hundred  tons  each,  were  provided  for  their 
accommodation,  and  provisions  of  all  kinds  laid 
in  for  the  voyage.  An  hundred  and  fifty  stand  of 
arms  were  ordered  from  the  Tower,  and  given 
them  by  his  Majesty  for  their  defence  after  their 
arrival  in  America;  all  of  which  deserves  to  be  re- 
corded for  the  honor  of  the  British  nation,  which 
has  at  different  times  set  before  the  world  many 
noble  examples  of  benevolence.  Everything 
being  ready  for  their  embarkation,  the  Palatines 
broke  up  their  camp  in  the  fields  behind  White 
Chapel,  and  proceeded  to  the  ships,  attended  by 
several  of  their  benefactors;  of  whom  they  took 
their  leave  with  songs  of  praise  to  God  in  their 
mouths,  and  tears  of  gratitude  in  their  eyes. 

"In  the  month  of  April,  1764,  they  arrived  at 
Charleston,  and  presented  a  letter  from  the  Lords- 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations  to  Gov- 
ernor Boone,  acquainting  him  that  his  Majesty 
had  been  pleased  to  take  the  poor  Palatines  under 
his  royal  care  and  protection,  and,  as  many  of 
them  were  versed  in  the  culture  of  silks  and  vines, 
had  ordered  that  a  settlement  be  provided  for 
them  in  Carolina,  in  a  situation  most  proper  for 
these  purposes.  Though  this  settlement  met  with 
some  obstruction  from  a  dispute  subsisting  at  that 
time  between  the  Governor  and  Assembly,  about 
certain  privileges  of  the  house,  3'et  the  latter  could 
not  help  considering  themselves  as  laid  under  the 
strongest  obligations  to  make  provision  for  so 
many  useful   settlers.     Accordingly,  in  imitation 


IN    NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  165 

of  the  noble  example  set  before  them  in  London, 
they  voted  five  hundred  pounds  sterling  to  be  dis- 
tributed among  the  Palatines,  according  to  the  di- 
rections of  the  Lieutenant-Governor,  and  their 
necessities.  That  thej  might  be  settled  in  a  bod}^, 
one  of  the  two  townships,  called  Londonderry, 
was  allotted  for  them,  and  divided  in  the  most 
equitable  manner,  into  small  tracts,  for  the  accom- 
modation of  each  family.  Captain  Calhoun,  with 
a  detachment  of  the  Rangers,  had  orders  to  meet 
them  by  the  way,  and  conduct  them  to  the  place 
where  their  town  was  to  be  built,  and  all  possible 
assistance  was  given  towards  promoting  their 
speedy  and  comfortable  settlement." 

In  the  State  Library  at  Raleigh,  i^orth  Carolina, 
to  which  the  writer  had  access  by  invitation  of  the 
late  Governor  Ellis,  he  found  an  old  map  of  South 
Carolina,  and  discovered  that  Londonderry  Town- 
ship is  the  exact  locality  answering  to  that  of 
Hard  Labor  Creek  in  Abbeville  County,  at  which 
place,  as  is  well  known,  a  settlement  of  Germans 
was  made,  and  a  Lutheran  church  and  congrega- 
tion once  existed;  so  that  this  fiict,  in  connection 
with  corresponding  dates,  besides  they  having 
been  met  by  Captain  Calhoun,  which  family  set- 
tled and  resided  in  Abbeville  District,  and  various 
other  circumstances,  prove  beyond  a  doubt  that 
this  interesting  account,  given  by  Ilewatt,  is  the 
story  of  the  colonization  of  our  German  Lutheran 
brethren  at  Hard  Labor  Creek. 

Dr.  Hazelius'  history  informs  us  (p.  120)  that 
formerly  there  existed  among  them  a  Lutheran 


166  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

church  and  congregation,  as  it  was  incorporated 
by  the  legislature,  February,  1788,  under  the  n^^e 
and  title  of  ''  St.  George,  on  Hard  Labor  Creek," 
and  a  few  years  ago,  whilst  on  a  visit  to  Abbeville, 
the  writer  was  informed  that  the  old  church  edi- 
fice was  still  standing. 

These  settlers  had  also  their  own  pastor,  for  at 
the  time  when  the  above-mentioned  visit  was  made 
there  were  persons  still  living  who  had  heard  him 
preach  in  St.  George's  Church. 

The  last  account  we  have  of  this  congregation 
may  be  found  in  the  journal  of  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller's 
missionary  tour,  published  in  the  minutes  of  the 
Spring  Session  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod,  of 
1812,  an  extract  of  which  is  here  given: 

"Saturday,  November  9th,  1811.  I  arrived  in 
the  evening,  after  having  crossed  Saluda  River, 
at  a  Mr.  Robert  Smith's,  on  Hard  Labor  Creek, 
where  my  appointments  were  to  commence.  Sun- 
day, the  10th,  I  preached  in  a  German  meeting- 
house; here  was  formerly  a  Lutheran  congrega- 
tion, but  no  remains  of  them  (Lutherans)  are  now 
to  be  found;  here  the  Methodists  and  Baptists 
have  pulled  each  other  out  of  the  pulpit.  Every 
person  seemed  very  attentive.  Here  is  a  full  proof 
of  the  necessity  of  missionary  preaching.  Bro- 
thers Dreher,  Meetze,  and  Fulmar,  from  the  con- 
gregation on  Saluda,  met  me  here." 

The  period  of  time  when  the  above  reported 
visit  of  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  was  made,  and  even  be- 
fore that  time,  was  the  trying  period  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  the  South  ;  the  want  of  ministers 


IN   NOKTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  167 

to  feed  the  flock  was  felt  everywhere;  the  people 
lived  as  sheep  without  a  shepherd,  and  soon  be- 
came a  prey  to  ravening  wolves;  and  this  congre- 
gation in  Abbeville  District,  being  somewhat  iso- 
lated and  remote  from  the  present  flourishing 
churches  in  the  central  and  southern  part  of  the 
State,  and  having  become  vacant,  could  not  be 
easily  visited  by  the  few  Lutheran  ministers  then 
laboring  in  South  C^irolina,  they  having  their 
hands  full  and  their  time  occupied  in  laboring 
among  the  other  churches  committed  to  their 
charge,  and  so  the  Lutheran  congregation  on 
Hard  Labor  Creek  very  naturally  became  extinct, 
and  thus  an  interesting  page  in  the  history  of  our 
Lutheran  Church  in  the  South  is  practically  lost 
to  us. 


Section  15,  Other  German  Settlements,  particularly 
in  South  Carolina. 

It  is  impossible  to  give  a  correct  account  of  all 
the  smaller  settlements  of  Germans  in  the  two 
Carolines,  inasmuch  as  no  records  concerning 
them  have  been  preserved,  either  in  the  colonial 
annals  of  these  two  States,  or  in  the  various  other 
published  or  unpublished  historical  reports,  from 
which  reliable  information  might  be  obtained. 
In  ]N"orth  Carolina  the  German  emigrants  from 
Pennsylvania,  that  scattered  themselves  over  the 
central  and  western  part  of  the  State,  located  them- 
selves in  companies  wherever  they  found  vacant 
lands   to   be  occupied,  and  continued    to  arrive 


168  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

almost  every  year  from  1740  to  the  breaking  out 
of  the  Revohitionary  War.  In  addition  to  these 
3'early  arrivals,  the  older  settlements  in  the  State 
began  likewise  to  send  out  new  colonies  farther 
westward  in  this  State,  and  in  this  manner  were 
new  settlements  of  Germans  formed  east  and  west 
of  the  Catawba  Eiver. 

In  South  Carolina  a  number  of  other  German 
settlements  were  made,  which  have  not  3'et  been 
noticed;  the  one  in  Barnwell  County  was  doubt- 
less formed  by  the  breaking  up  of  the  Dutch  col- 
on}^ on  James  Island,  the  gradual  absorption  of 
the  unsuccessful  German  and  Sw^iss  colony  at 
Purysburg,  and  the  influx  of  other  German  set- 
tlers from  Orangeburg  County.  In  much  the  same 
manner  wei*e  German  settlements  made  along  the 
boundary  line  of  Richland  and  Fairtield  Counties, 
on  Cedar  and  Dutchman's  Creeks.  The  most  of 
these  colonists  doubtless  came  from  adjoining 
older  settlements;  as  the  one  at  Saxe-Gotha  Town- 
ship, Lexington  County,  was  nearest  to  Richland 
and  Fairfield,  it  may  have  supplied  the  German 
element  residing  there.  On  Cedar  Creek  there 
was  once  a  German  church,  which  bore  the  name  of 
"  German  Protestant  Church  of  Apii-Forum,"  and 
was  incorporated  by  legislative  enactment  in  1788. 
From  the  best  accounts  that  we  can  gather  at  this 
late  date,  this  congregation,  having  been  so  long 
neglected  by  our  Lutheran  and  German  Reformed 
ministers,  became  at  last  absorbed  by  and  into  a 
Methodist  congregation  in  the  vicinity.  The 
Newberry   County  Germans  were  mostly  all  de- 


m   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  169 

sceiidants  from  the  original  German  settlers  in 
Saxe-Gotha  Township,  with  an  occasional  addi- 
tion from  the  German  settlements  of  Il^orth  Caro- 
lina and  Virginia. 

In  the  southern  part  of  Edgefield  County,  along 
the  Savannah  River,  and  opposite  the  city  of  Au- 
gusta, Georgia,  there  was  a  township  laid  out  at 
an  early  date,  bearing  the  name  of  ]^ew  Windsor; 
here  a  number  of  German  emigrants  were  located, 
that  were  brought  over  to  America  by  the  Rev. 
Bartholomew  Zauberbiihler  of  Orangeburg  noto- 
riety, or  came  over  to  South  Carolina  under  his 
influence;  at  a  later  date  an  addition  of  German 
emigrants  was  made  to  this  new  colony,  who  were 
brought  there  by  John  Jacob  Riemensperger,  who 
appears  to  have  been  commissioned  so  to  do  by 
the  provincial  government  of  South  Carolina;  it 
is  possible  that  the  German  descendants,  now  re- 
siding in  the  central  part  of  Edgefield  County, 
came  originally  from  this  settlement  and  Saxe- 
Gotha  Township.  This  supposition  is  strength- 
ened by  the  fact  that  Riemensperger  brought  col- 
onists also  to  Saxe-Gotha,  which  may  have  induced 
both  settlements  to  locate  a  colony  on  lands  lying 
about  midway  between  them. 

Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  speaks  of  meeting  a  cer- 
tain Philip  Eisenman  in  Charleston  during  his 
visit  there  in  177-i;  this  Eisenman  informed  him 
that  he  was  a  resident  "  of  Old  Indian  Swamp, 
fifty  miles  in  the  countrj^  who  arranged  his  barn 
for  public  worship,  and  they  (he  and  his  neigh- 
bors) have   accepted   as   preacher  a  young  mau 

15 


170  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

lately  arrived  from  Germany,  and  who  might 
answer  for  a  schoohnaster."  The  Doctor  does  not 
mention  his  name,  nor  does  he  speak  very  highly 
of  his  attainments.  A  church,  bearing  the  name 
of  "The  German  Protestant  Church  of  St.  George 
on  Indian  Field  Swamp,"  was  incorporated  by 
the  legislature  in  1788.  Taking  these  facts  to- 
gether, it  is  proper  to  conclude  that  a  German 
settlement  was  made  fifty  miles  from  Charleston, 
that  these  Germans  had  a  church  of  their  own, 
which  was  doubtless  unitedly  Lutheran  and  Ke- 
formed,  as  it  bore  the  name  "  German  Protestant," 
but  where  to  locate  the  church  is  now  a  matter  of 
impossibility,  as  the  afore-mentioned  swamp  is  not 
shown  on  any  of  the  old  or  modern  maps  of  South 
Carolina;  it  is  probable,  however,  that  it  had  its 
position  in  Barnwell  County,  where  there  are 
Lutheran  Churches  at  the  present  time. 

About  the  year  1750,  a  German  colony  from 
the  Palatinate  arrived  in  South  Carolina,  and 
"  after  some  delay,  settled  in "  what  was  then 
called  "Anson  County,"  I^^orth  Carolina,  along 
the  boundary  line  between  the  two  provinces,  on 
lands  that  are  now  located  in  Union  County, 
North  Carolina,  and  Lancaster  and  Chesterfield 
Counties,  South  Carolina,  many  of  whose  descend- 
ants are  still  living,  and  are  gathered  in  Lutheran 
congregations  belonging  to  the  Tennessee  Synod. 

In  company  with  this  colony  came  the  Rev. 
John  E'icholas  Martin,  one  of  the  first  pastors  of 
St.  John's  Lutheran  Church,  Charleston,  South 
Carolina,  but  at  that  time  a  layman,  and  the  father 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  171 

of  a  family  "with  several  children."  Accordino- 
to  Kev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg's  statement,  he  was  a 
self-taught  man,  and  was  said  to  have  been  or- 
dained afterwards  by  the  Lutheran  pastors  at 
Ebenezer,  Georgia.  He  did  not  remain  long  in 
Anson  County,  ]N"orth  Carolina,  but,  in  company 
"  with  the  larger  portion  of"  his  fellow-colonists, 
removed  to  the  fork  of  Saluda  and  Broad  Rivers, 
in  South  Carolina,  where  they  found  permanent 
homes,  and  where  afterwards  they  were  also 
served  in  spiritual  things  by  Rev.  Martin,  after 
having  been  pastor  in  Charleston  from  1763  to 
1767,  but  who  finally  located  himself  permanently 
in  that  city. 

Section  16.  Hessian  Deserters  during  the  Revolution. 

The  period  of  the  Revolutionary  War  was  one 
of  sore  trial  to  all  the  American  colonies,  and  the 
German  settlers  underwent  an  amount  of  suffering 
no  less  than  that  of  other  citizens;  the  thirteen 
Provinces  numbered  at  that  time  three  millions  of 
inhabitants,  and  these  had  established  their  homes 
wdth  but  few  exceptions,  east  of  the  Alleghany 
Mountains.  It  'was  a  severe  trial  for  them  to  take 
up  arms  and  send  ablebodied  men  into  the  battle- 
field, when  they  were  needed  at  home  in  develop- 
ing the  resources  of  their  country,  which  had  been 
but  partially  reclaimed  from  its  primeval  condi- 
tion. Thousands  left  home  and  enlisted  for  the 
\var,  who  never  again  returned,  but  whose  bodies 
filled  the  honored  graves  of  the  patriot  soldier; 
thousands  of  widows  and  orphans  lamented  their 


172  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

irreparable  loss,  and  a  void  was  created  in  the 
heart  and  a  vacancy  at  the  fireside,  which  in  most 
cases  was  never  again  filled. 

England  supplied  her  depleted  ranks  in  the 
army  from  the  overcrowded  population  of  other 
European  countries,  whose  military  service  she 
procured  by  large  subsidies  to  the  sovereigns  of 
these  people,  and  bounty  money  to  the  purchased 
soldier,  thinking  to  gain  thereby  a  two-fold  ad- 
vantage, that  of  saving  her  British  subjects,  who 
went  reluctantly  to  fight  against  their  own  flesh 
and  blood,  for  so  were  the  American  colonists 
regarded,  and  that  of  preventing  desertion  to  the 
American  army  and  cause  of  liberty  and  indepen- 
dence. It  was  confidently  supposed  that  the  Ger- 
man soldiers,  mostly  Hessians,  numbering  "  a  little 
over  seventeen  thousand  men,"  ignorant  of  the 
English  language,  generally  spoken  in  America, 
would  be  proof  against  the  seductive  representa- 
tions made  b}^  the  Americans;  and  to  make  this 
fancied  security  doubly  sure,  the  most  incredible 
stories  concerning  the  character  of  the  Americans 
were  freely  circulated  among  the  Hessians. 

However,  one  thing  the  British  government 
had  entirely  overlooked,  namely,  that  numbers  of 
the  American  citizens  were  Germans  and  German 
descendants,  still  bearing  German  names,  pos- 
sessed of  German  characteristics,  and  speaking 
the  German  language.  'No  sooner  did  the  Hes- 
sian soldiers  come  in  contact  with  these  German- 
American  citizens,  than  they  deserted  the  ranks 
of  the  British  army  whenever  they  found  a  safe 


m  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  173 

opportunity  for  so  doing,  and  fled  to  the  German 
settlements,  to  be  delivered  from  the  dangers  and 
hardships  of  a  war  in  which  they  had  no  interest. 

In  these  settlements  the  identity  of  the  Hessian 
deserters  soon  became  lost  to  the  British,  and  the 
German  farmers  were  only  too  happy  to  have  the 
Hessians  in  their  midst  as  laborers  ever  to  betray 
them  to  the  British,  who  were  their  own  enemies 
as  well  as  they  were  dangerous  foes  to  the  Hes- 
sian deserters.  The  Hessians  discovered  that 
these  American-Germans  were  both  civilized  and 
christianized,  contrary  to  the  slanderous  tales  cir- 
culated by  the  British  leaders;  and  though  they 
were  not  originally  from  the  same  German  prov- 
ince, yet  they  spake  the  German  language,  and 
were  generally  of  the  same  faith  with  themselves. 
Besides,  they  discovered  that  land  was  cheap  and 
labor  scarce,  and  that  better  prospects  were  before 
them  in  America,  than  they  could  ever  hope  to 
find  on  their  return  to  Germany  after  the  termina- 
tion of  the  war. 

In  this  manner  were  the  German  settlements  at 
the  !N"orth,  where  the  Hessians  first  landed,  sup- 
plied with  a  valuable  addition  to  their  strength ; 
and  farther  south,  particularly  in  the  Carolinas, 
many  honest,  industrious,  and  useful  German  set- 
tlers came  in  good  time  to  supply  the  loss  that  had 
been  caused  by  the  w^ar.  These  did  not,  and  of 
necessity  could  not,  form  separate  settlements,  as 
that  would  most  certainly  have  endangered  their 
safety  as  long  as  the  war  continued,  but  they  lo- 


174  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

catecl  themselves  among  the  German  farmers,  who 
had  already  been  established  in  this  country. 

Among  these  Hessian  deserters  was  one  who 
afterwards  became  a  Lutheran  minister  in  South 
Carolina,  named  John  Yost  Miitze,  known  better 
as  Rev.  J.  Y.  Meetze,  and  whose  histor}^  w^as  ob- 
tained from  one  of  his  sons.  He  deserted  near 
Charleston  at  the  time  the  British  army  was  be- 
sieging that  city  from  the  other  side  of  Ashley 
River;  he  was  pursued  some  thirty  miles,  but 
finally  made  his  escape  over  Bacon's  bridge,  where 
he  was  safe  within  the  American  lines.  He  located 
himself  in  Saxe-Gotha  Township,  now  Lexington 
County,  six  miles  above  the  present  county-seat, 
and  became  the  forefather  of  a  large  and  influen- 
tial family  in  that  section  of  the  countr3\  The 
following  tablet  inscription  marks  the  spot  where 
his  remains  now  repose  : 

"  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  the  Rev.  J.  Y.  Meetze, 
who  departed  this  life  May  7th,  1833,  aged  76 
years,  5  months,  and  5  days." 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  175 


CHAPTER  11. 

CONDITION   AND    HISTORY   OF    THE    GERMAN    COLONIES 

IN  THE  CAROLINAS  TO  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE 

REVOLUTIONARY  WAR. 

Section  1.  A  Brief  Review  of  the  Planting  of  the  differ- 
ent German  Colonies  in  North  and  South  Carolina. 

"  The  child  is  the  father  of  the  man;"  this  is  a 
trite  but  true  saying,  and  is  the  key  that  unlocks 
many  of  the  peculiar  mysteries  of  habit,  manners 
and  customs,  as  well  as  the  moral,  intellectual 
and  religious  life  of  any  community.  The  condi- 
tion of  an  infant  colony  has  much  to  do  with  its 
future  development ;  one  age  of  the  world  suc- 
ceeds another  as  naturally,  and  adjusts  itself  to 
the  preceding  age  as  appropriately  as  do  the  sev- 
eral pieces  of  mosaic  in  making  a  grand  whole — a 
perfect  picture  ;  and,  inasmuch  as  there  can  be  no 
effect  without  a  cause,  it  is  always  necessary  to 
study  the  character  and  condition  of  the  early 
colonies,  if  we  desire  to  understand  fully  their 
peculiarities  of  the  present  time. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  German  settle- 
ments in  the  Carolinas  would  form  the  only  excep- 


176  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

tion  to  this  general  rule.  With  these  truths  before 
us,  and  kept  always  in  view,  the  peculiar  difler- 
ences,  that  still  mark  the  North  and  South  Caro- 
lina German  descendants  at  the  present  day,  can 
be  easily  understood.  Local  and  State  govern- 
ments have  had  somethins:  to  do  with  the  formino: 
of  these  peculiar  characteristics,  but  when  we  re- 
flect that  these  governments  are  the  creatures  of 
the  settlers  of  each  county,  then  we  are  again 
thrown  back  upon  the  original  condition  of  the 
first  colonies. 

Again,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  German 
forefathers,  coming  directly  from  various  parts  of 
Germany  or  from  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania, 
would  leave  their  German  peculiarities  at  home, 
and  be  ready  to  adopt  the  manners  and  customs  of 
the  settlers  who  preceded  them  and  among  whom 
thc}^  lived,  or  be  moulded  into  their  religions  be- 
lief and  peculiar  ecclesiastical  usages.  This  doubt- 
less was  the  case  with  those  German  settlers,  who 
were  isolated  and  cut  off  from  all  intercourse  with 
their  brethren,  and  where  other  elements  of  colo- 
nization predominated,  but  not  until  after  process 
of  time,  when  a  generation  or  two  had  passed 
away. 

The  Dutch  were  the  first  Lutheran  settlers  in 
the  Carolinas,  and  history  has  informed  us  how 
strenuously  they,  with  others,  resisted  the  en- 
croachments of  the  Church  of  England  upon  their 
faith,  and  how  they  straggled  against  the  eftbrts 
of  the  Proprietary  government  of  Soutli  Carolina 
to  make  Episcopalians  of  them  and  their  children; 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  177 

whilst  the  German  and  Swiss  colonj^  atl^ewberne, 
l^orth  Carolina,  in  course  of  time,  submitted  to 
the  arrangement  of  a  change  of  their  faith,  when 
made  in  a  more  conciliatory  spirit  and  manner. 
However,  as  both  these  colonies  became  practi- 
cally lost  to  the  faith  of  their  early  founders,  it  is 
unnecessary  to  follow  them  any  farther,  as  on  this 
wise  their  original  identity  was  lost;  although  a 
number  of  the  Dutch  settlers  found  congenial 
homes,  and  preserved  their  original  faith  among 
German  settlers  in  other  parts  of  South  Carolina. 
Charleston,  Purysburg,  Barnwell,  Orangeburg, 
Saxe-Gotha,  Edgefield  and  ISTewberry  received 
their  Teutonic  element  previous  to  the  year  1740, 
and  inasmuch  as,  with  the  exception  of  Purys- 
burg, the  descendants  of  these  settlers  are  still  to 
be  met  there,  and  the  Lutheran  Church  is  firmly 
established  among  them,  it  is  proper  to  examine 
the  condition  of  these  early  settlements  to  under- 
stand their  peculiar  characteristics  manifest  at  the 
present  day.  They  received  their  principal 
strength  from  several  German  nationalities;  na- 
tives of  Switzerland,  the  Palatinate,  Austria,  Wiir- 
temberg,  Holland  and  the  Hessian  States,  located 
themselves  principally  in  those  parts  of  South 
Carolina,  and  all,  of  course,  brought  their  peculiar 
national  characteristics  with  them,  and  were  so 
far  beneficial  to  each  other  as  to  increase  their  in- 
tellectual and  practical  acquirements  in  almost 
every  department  of  life,  for  they  could  communi- 
cate to  each  other  the  ideas  and  information  which 
they  received  in  their  difterent  mental  and  religious 


178  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

trainings,  as  well  as  what  was  customary  and  ad- 
vantageous in  the  useful  arts  in  their  native  coun- 
tries. Besides,  the  Swiss  element  largely  pre- 
dominated over  any  one  of  the  other  German  na- 
tionalities, and  these  Switzers,  coming  from  the 
land  of  WilHam  Tell,  were  born  and  cradled  in  a 
republic,  lived  in  an  adopted  country  which  had 
overthrown  the  Proprietary  government  in  1719, 
because  of  its  oppressive  rule  in  that  province; — 
need  any  one  then  be  astonished  at  their  love  of 
liberty,  and  the  prompt  assertion  of  their  inaliena- 
ble rights? 

Their  peculiar  ecclesiastical  condition  is  like- 
wise the  result  of  their  early  colonial  training; 
in  the  interior  of  South  Carolina  the  Lutherans 
and  German  Reformed  did  not  continue  long  as 
two  separate  denominations,  owing  to  the  neglect 
of  the  German  Keformed  Church  in  taking  care 
of  their  congregations  so  far  south,  and  failing  to 
supply  them  with  ministers  of  the  gospel  after  the 
older  ministers  there  had  all  died.  This,  no  doubt, 
the  German  Reformed  Church  in  America  could 
not  avoid,  and  thus  the  members  of  that  Church 
in  those  settlements  soon  lost  their  ecclesiastical 
identity,  many  having  connected  themselves  with 
the  Lutheran  Church;  whilst  others,  who  were 
again  necessarily  neglected  by  the  Lutherans,  were 
absorbed  by  other  denominations.  In  Charleston 
the  ecclesiastical  union  of  Germans  extended  still 
'farther,  and  embraced  even  those  who  were  at- 
tached to  the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  of  which  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen,  of  Helmstaedt,  Germany,  re- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  179 

ports  in  his  preface  to  the  N'orth  Carolina  Cate- 
chism, as  follows:  "We  have  likewise  the  assur- 
ance from  other  parts  of  America,  that  our  books 
of  instruction  are  suitable  to  their  wants.  Besides, 
various  of  these  books  have  been  also  introduced 
in  Charleston,  bj  the  approval  and  support  of  the 
congregation,  for  the  instruction  of  their  youth. 
This  congregation  may  be  looked  upon  as  an  ex- 
ample of  Christian  harmony,  for  it  is  composed  of  a 
union  of  Lutherans,  German  Reformed  and  Catholics, 
all  of  whom  live,  according  to  the  testimony  of 
their  pastor,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Faber,  very  peaceably 
together,  although  they  are  educated  in  different 
principles  of  religion.  They  visit  the  house  of 
God  faithfully,  and  contribute  equally  for  the  sup- 
port of  divine  worship."  Thus  were  these  dif- 
ferent elements  united,  communicating  to  each 
other  their  peculiar  faith  and  church  usages,  re- 
taining, however,  the  Lutheran  name  up  to  the 
present  time. 

The  only  other  extensive  settlement  of  Germans 
in  South  Carolina  was  the  one  in  Abbeville  County, 
on  Hard  Labor  Creek,  wdiich  remained  Lutheran 
for  a  number  of  years,  but,  owing  to  neglect  on 
the  part  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  supplying 
those  people  with  the  much-needed  means  of  grace, 
they  became,  in  course  of  time,  lost  to  the  Lu- 
theran faith  entirely. 

In  Korth  Carolina  there  existed  an  entirely  dif- 
ferent state  of  things;  all  the  German  settlers, 
with  the  exception  of  those  w^ho  were  located  at 
Newberne,  came  mostly  from  Pennsylvania  during 


180  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

a  period  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  years  before  tlie 
Revolutionary  War;  even  the  Moravians  at  Salera 
and  viciuit}^  came  originally  and  mostly  from  that 
Province;  consequently,  one  will  find  Pennsyl- 
vania ideas,  habits,  manners  and  customs  pre- 
vailing: amons:  the  German  descendants  in  ^orth 
Carolina,  and  here  and  there  the  Pennsylvania- 
German  dialect  still  spoken  among  the  aged.  In 
addition  to  that,  the  Lutherans,  German  Reformed 
and  Moravians  have  always  preserved  their  eccle- 
siastical identity,  and  although  the  Lutherans  and 
Reformed  built  many  joint-churches  for  them- 
selves, in  which  both  these  denominations  wor- 
shiped alternately,  that  arrangement  has  not  ma- 
terially interfered  with  their  respective  faith  and 
ecclesiastical  usages. 

Asrain,  these  North  Carolina  German  settle- 
ments  have  been  mostly  made  in  the  country,  as 
those  colonists  from  Pennsylvania  were  principally 
farmers,  and  continued  to  follow  their  peaceful 
and  unambitious  pursuits  for  many  years,  and 
until  recently,  they  cared  to  make  but  little  prog- 
ress in  intellectual  pursuits  beyond  that  which 
their  forefathers  enjoyed,  they  continued  their 
German  schools  and  German  worship  for  a  long 
time,  and  but  few  of  their  descendants  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits,  or  sought  distinction  and 
prominence  in  the  arena  of  political  life;  and,  as 
a  general  thing,  they  also  adhered  all  the  more 
closely  to  the  faith  and  church  usages  of  their 
forefathers.  Besides,  with  the  exception  of  the 
German  and  Swiss  settlers  atNewberne,  the  three 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  181 

German  denominations  of  ]N"orth  Carolina  have 
lost  but  very  little  by  the  proselyting  encroach- 
ments of  other  denominations,  compared  with  the 
German  settlements  of  almost  every  other  State 
in  the  Union. 

This  is  doubtless  owing  to  various  circum- 
stances :  firstly^  they  were  more  strongly  attached 
to  their  own  peculiar  faith;  secondly,  they  remained 
more  closely  together  in  their  own  settlements, 
and  when  they  did  colonize,  it  was  generally  done 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  have  a  number  of  German 
families  locate  in  the  same  new  settlement;  thirdly, 
they  were  more  regularly  supplied  with  the  means 
of  grace  in  their  own  churches,  although  there 
were  some  exceptions  to  this  condition  of  things 
in  certain  localities  ;  fourthly,  the  German  colonies 
were  established  in  IN'orth  Carolina  at  a  later  date, 
when  the  parent  Churches  in  Europe  had  become 
fully  awakened  to  the  importance  of  taking  care 
of  their  interests  in  America. 


Section  '2.   Trials  and  Difficulties  of  the  Early 
Settlers. 

The  trials  of  strangers  in  a  strange  land  under 
the  most  favorable  circumstances,  when  the  neces- 
saries and  comforts  of  life  are  at  their  command, 
are  sufficiently  numerous  and  hard  in  themselves; 
the  feeling  of  loneliness,  the  separation  from  af- 
fectionate relatives  and  friends,  the  sighings  ("Ach 
und  Weh")  produced  by  home-sickness,  especially 
such  as  the  Swiss  emigrant  must  have  felt,  when 


182    -  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

he  contrasted  the  grandeur  of  the  Alphie  scenery 
in  his  native  land  with  his  surroundings  in  the 
Carolinas,  located,  as  he  was,  upon  the  level  and 
sandy  plains,  wdiich  extend  there  along  the  At- 
lantic coast.  In  the  same  manner,  doubtless,  were 
also  the  German  Palatines  affected,  although  war 
had  driven  them  from  their  peaceful  homes,  when 
they  remembered  the  beautiful  banks  along  the 
Rhine  and  its  vine-clad  hills,  which  they  had  left 
behind  them — never  to  behold  again  ;  all  of  which 
tended  to  make  the  heart  sink  within  them  in 
mental  anguish  and  despondency.  Wise  indeed, 
as  well  as  kind,  was  the  divine  injunction  given 
to  the  children  of  Israel,  Deut.  10:19:  "Love 
ye,  therefore,  the  stranger :  for  ye  were  strangers 
in  the  land  of  Egypt." 

Yet  how  much  greater  must  have  been  the 
anguish  and  suffering  of  the  early  colonists,  who 
either  willingly  or  necessarily  abandoned  home 
without  the  most  distant  prospect  of  return,  to 
dwell  in  a  land  that  could  give  them  no  shelter, 
until  the  log-cabin  was  erected  by  their  own  in- 
dustry, and  no  necessary  supplies  of  life,  until 
they  could  cultivate  these  themselves;  and  all  that 
they  possessed  to  sustain  life  was  often  nothing 
more  than  what  they  brought  with  them  from 
the  vessel  that  conveyed  them  to  America.  The 
first  English  colony,  located  on  Roanoke  Island 
in  North  Carolina,  actually  perished  from  want, 
and  was  swept  away  entirely;  not  a  soul  was  left 
to  tell  the  tale  of  its  woes  and  sufferings,  of  which 
Dr.  Hawks  speaks:  "It  was  subjected  to  the  hor- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  183 

rors  of  famine;  time  and  experience  would  prob- 
ably have  corrected  the  other  evils  we  have  named, 
but  for  starvation  there  was  no  remedy;  and  so, 
after  the  toil  and  suffering  of  years,  the  expendi- 
ture of  much  precious  treasure,  and  the  loss  of 
still  more  precious  life,  the  waves  of  Albemarle 
rolled,  as  of  old,  their  ripples  up  the  deserted 
island  beach,  and  the  only  voice  heard  was  that 
of  the  fitful  winds,  as  they  sighed  through  the 
forests  of  Roanoke,  and  broke  upon  the  stillness 
of  nature's  rough  repose.  The  white  man  was 
there  no  longer." 

And  then  came  also  the  exposure  to  all  kinds 
of  weather  and  the  iuhospitality  of  climate,  to 
which  the  early  settlers  were  as  yet  unaccustomed, 
which,  with  the  ignorance  in  regard  to  the  pecu- 
liarities of  the  new  country,  often  locating  them- 
selves near  streams  of  water,  the  malaria  of  which 
superinduced  sickness,  frequently  brought  the 
strongest  constitutioned  person  to  an  early  grave; 
whilst  others  were  so  enfeebled  by  sickness,  that 
all  their  native  strength  and  energy,  brought  with 
them  from  the  Fatherland,  was  necessarily  pros- 
trated. It  was  some  time  before  they  became  ac- 
quainted with  the  peculiarities  of  the  country  and 
climate,  and  discovered  the  healthy  localities, 
where  they  would  be  free  from  the  attacks  of 
malignant  fevers,  and  their  physical  constitution 
would  adapt  itself  to  the  climate  of  their  new 
homes. 

But  the  greatest  hardship  of  the  early  settlers 
was  the  occasional  outbreak  of  hostility  from  the 


184  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Indians;  this  was  a  never-failing  cause  of  appre- 
hension and  alarm.  Whilst  the  Indians  remained 
near  them,  they  never  felt  themselves  perfectly 
safe;  war  often  broke  out  upon  them  quite  un- 
awares; the  strong  man,  the  helpless  woman  and 
the  innocent  child  were  not  unfrequently  mur- 
dered in  cold  blood.  In  this  manner  did  many 
of  the  poor  Palatines  and  Swiss,  in  and  around 
]N"ewberne,  lose  their  lives  during  the  Tuscarora 
and  Core  Indian  war,  as  already  related  in  chapter 
i,  section  7,  of  this  history,  containing  an  extract 
from  Dr.  Hawks'  History  of  Korth  Carolina. 
"Whenever  the  early  colonists  were  pursuing  their 
daily  avocations,  at  home  or  in  the  Held,  at  church 
or  elsewhere,  the  trusty  rifle  had  always  to  accom- 
pany them,  so  that  they  might  be  prepared  for 
any  sudden  attack. 

The  sparseness  of  population  was  another  great 
inconvenience  to  the  early  settlers,  both  in  the 
matter  of  defence  against  the  hostile  attacks  of 
the  Indians,  as  well  as  in  the  procuring  of  most 
of  the  necessary  articles  of  husbandry  and  do- 
mestic life.  There  were  but  few  mechanics  and 
still  fewer  trading-places,  where  the  supplies  of 
commerce  could  be  obtained,  so  that  nearly  all  the 
settlers  were  obliged  to  live  and  labor  without 
those  thins^s  which  are  now  reo-arded  as  neces- 
saries  of  life.  This,  of  course,  compelled  each 
family  to  manufacture  their  own  articles  of  cloth- 
ing and  implements  of  husbandry;  the  loom,  the 
anvil,  the  tannery  and  the  shoe-shop  became  nec- 
essary adjuncts  to  almost  every  household,  whilst 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  185 

all  the  inmates  of  the  family  had  to  content  them- 
selves to  live  and  be  clad  in  the  most  primitive 
style;  useful  industry  became  every  member  of 
society  at  that  time,  and  the  hum  of  the  spinning- 
wheel  resounded  in  almost  every  dwelling. 

Section  3.   Character,  Occupation  and  Condition  of 
the  German  Settlers  in  the  Carolinas. 

Wherever  the  Germans  have  located  themselves, 
they  have  usually  manifested  certain  traits  of  char- 
acter, which  are  upon  the  whole  very  commend- 
able. Whilst  they  are  generally  retiring  and 
peaceful  in  their  intercourse  with  man,  opposed 
to  riot  and  contention,  and  will  patiently  suffer 
wrong  for  a  long  time,  thej^  are  nevertheless  un- 
willing to  submit  to  oppression  when  persistently 
brought  to  bear  down  upon  them;  they  may  be 
led,  their  minds  are  open  to  conviction,  but  they 
cannot  be  driven,  and  will  determinately  resist 
all  attempts  to  deprive  them  of  their  inalienable 
rights. 

The  Germans  are  the  most  industrious  settlers 
that  have  ever  come  to  America;  they  are  willing 
to  endure  any  amount  of  toil  to  secure  a  perma- 
nent home,  or  an  establishment  over  which  they 
ma}^  have  entire  control;  they  never  shrink  from 
labor  that  promises  to  be  remunerative;  every- 
thing around  them  must  be  Avell  and  profitably 
arranged,  hence  their  farms  usuall}^  present  the 
appearance  of  order,  thrift  and  comfort;  all  vrork 
must  be  well  done,  ere  it  can  be  made  satisfactory 

16 


186  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

to  them.  Besides,  they  also  love  home  and  its 
comforts,  and  are  usually  slow  to  leave  the  place 
which  they  have  once  secured  as  their  own;  there 
are  plantations  and  farms  at  the  present  day  in 
possession  among  the  German  descendants  in  both 
the  Carolinas,  that  have  never  passed  out  of  the 
family,  being  still  held  by  virtue  of  the  original 
grant  or  deed  made  in  colonial  times.  They 
generally  persevere  in  all  their  undertakings,  even 
when  the  immediate  prospects  are  not  encour- 
aging, and  manage  all  their  affairs  with  the  strict- 
est economy,  often  carrying  their  frugality  to  such 
an  extreme  as  to  become  a  fault,  when  such 
frugality  is  no  longer  needed.  Honesty  and  up- 
rightness are  also  marked  characteristics  of  the 
Germans;  they  shrink  from  debt,  and  are  un- 
happy as  long  as  all  their  liabilities  are  not  can- 
celled, and  when  once  a  promise  has  been  made 
by  them,  it  can  generally  be  relied  on,  for  their 
word  is  usually  as  good  as  their  bond;  there  are, 
of  course,  exceptions  to  this  general  trait  of  char- 
acter, yet  not  so  many  as  materiallj^  to  impair  the 
confidence  which  is  usually  reposed  in  the  Ger- 
mans and  their  immediate  descendants  every- 
where. They  are  slow  in  making  changes,  and 
often  tenaciously  adhere  for  a  long  time  to  the 
practices  and  conduct  of  their  forefathers;  this 
has  been  frequently  attributed  to  them  as  a  fault, 
inasmuch  as  they  appear  so  unwilling  to  make 
progress  and  keep  pace  with  modern  advance- 
ment; yet  whilst  this  may  be  true,  it  can  also  be 
said  that  they  do  not  advance  so  readily  in  the 


IN  NORTH  AND  SOUTH   CAROLINA.  187 

vices,  immoralities  and  fraudulent  dealings  of  our 
progressive  age. 

The  Germans  appear  to  have  been  specially 
fitted  in  all  their  characteristics  to  make  the  wilds 
of  America  to  blossom  and  bloom  as  the  rose; 
their  patient  toil,  together  with  their  excellent  and 
economical  management,  has  made  the  soil  of  this 
country  to  produce  abundantly,  thereby  enhanc- 
ing its  material  prosperity. 

The  early  German  colonists  were  slow  in  aban- 
doning their  native  language,  especially  where 
they  lived  in  settlements  of  their  own,  and  did  not 
come  much  in  contact  with  other  people,  as  was 
the  case  in  agricultural  districts;  this  was  one  of 
the  causes  of  their  having  retained  their  peculiar 
traits  of  character  for  so  long  a  time,  having  had 
its  influence  also  upon  their  educational,  religious, 
social  and  moral  condition.  They  established 
parochial  schools  in  all  their  settlements,  wherever 
it  could  possibly  be  done,  and  a  teacher  could  be 
secured,  an  arrangement  to  which  they  had  al- 
ways been  accustomed  in  their  Fatherland,  in 
which  the  catechism  was  taught,  as  well  as  the 
other  branches  of  rudimental  knowledge;  neither 
was  the  Bible  excluded  from  the  school,  and  gene- 
rally constituted  the  text-book  in  the  reading 
classes ;  by  this  means  a  vast  amount  of  religious 
intelligence  was  diffused  among  the  German  set- 
tlers and  their  descendants. 

Their  divine  service  was  conducted  for  a  long 
period  of  time  in  the  German  language,  and  when, 
at  length,  it  did  become  absolutely  necessary  to 


188  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

introduce  the  English  language  occasionally  in 
their  churches,  because  some  of  their  descendants 
and  some  English  settlers  among  them  coukl  not 
understand  the  German  very  well,  the  minister  or 
pastor  in  charge,  who  conscientiously  tavored  or 
proposed  this  new^  arrangement,  often  met  with  a 
storm  of  opposition  that  generally  impaired  his 
usefulness,  and  obliged  him  to  seek  for  another 
field  of  labor.  His  successor,  however,  then  found 
the  way  prepared  before  him,  and  could  officiate 
in  English  without  much  opposition,  the  storm 
having  spent  itself  upon  the  pastor  who  first  pro- 
posed the  change.  This  same  German  character- 
istic, namely,  opposition  to  all  innovations,  or  firm 
adherence  to  the  ways  of  their  forefathers,  had 
another  deleterious  efiect :  it  sometimes  became 
necessary  to  have  a  church  located  in  town,  in 
order  to  preserve  its  prosperity,  when  a  number  of 
the  members  had  removed  there,  and  the  town 
became  the  central  point  of  the  congregation,  then 
animosities  would  sometimes  arise,  which  either 
defeated  the  proposed  measure,  or  necessitated 
the  removal  of  the  pastor.  The  long  use  of  the 
German  language,  w^hilst  it  exerted  a  deleterious 
influence  upon  the  Church  in  retarding  its  prog- 
ress, in  many  instances  also  preserved  it  from  the 
encroachments  of  error  and  the  inroads  of  prose- 
lytism,  especially  in  the  rural  districts;  whilst  in 
cities  and  towns  it  had  the  opposite  efiect,  and 
caused  numbers  of  the  German  descendants  to 
connect  themselves  with  other  denominations,  who 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  189 

would  gladly  have  remained  in  the  church  of  their 
fathers. 

Many  of  the  Germans  in  the  Province  of  South 
Carolina  were  brought  there  with  the  design  of 
establishing  the  production  of  silk  and  the  culti- 
vation of  the  grape-vine,  with  which  the  Swiss 
and  Palatines  were  well  acquainted,  as  it  was 
thought  that  the  soil  and  climate  were  admirably 
adapted  thereto;  but  it  did  not  promise  much  suc- 
cess, owing  chiefly  to  the  little  demand  for  those 
articles  of  luxury  at  the  time,  and  the  more  profl.t- 
able  employment  of  labor  in  other  and  more  nec- 
essary articles;  besides,  the  cost  of  producing  silk 
and  wine  was  greater  than  in  Europe.  Wine 
could  be  made,  as  the  grape-vine  bears  plenti- 
fully, but  the  wine  produced  in  South  Carolina 
cannot  be  long  preserved  in  so  warm  a  climate 
without  admixture  of  other  ingredients,  especially 
in  the  lowlands,  where  the  first  German  settlers 
were  located.  Planting,  farming  and  the  useful 
arts  constituted  the  principal  employment  of  the 
Germans  and  their  descendants  in  the  Carolinas : 
merchandizing,  especially  in  towms  and  cities, 
eventually  claimed  their  attention  also,  but  only 
to  a  limited  extent.  Their  mode  of  living,  their 
industrious  habits,  and  their  simplicity  of  manners, 
to  all  of  which  they  had  been  accustomed  in  their 
Fatherland,  were  well  adapted  to  the  condition  of 
the  country  in  its  early  period  of  colonization,  of 
which  Captain  John  Smith,  though  Governor  of 
another  Province,  the  Virginia  Colony  of  James- 
town, very  appropriately  remarks:  "When  you 


s 

190  ^^      THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

send  again,  I  entreat  you,  rather  send  but  thirty 
carpenters,  husbandmen,  gardeners,  fishermen, 
blacksmiths,  masons  and  diggers  up  of  trees' 
roots,  well  provided,  than  a  thousand  such  as  we 
have;  for  except  we  be  able  to  lodge  them  and 
feed  them,  the  most  will  consume  with  want  of 
necessaries  before  they  can  be  made  good  for  any 
thing."  {SmiiKs  History  of  Virginia,  vol.  i,  p. 
202.) 

The  purity  of  morals  of  the  early  German  set- 
tlers likewise  contrasts  very  favorably  with  some 
of  the  English  colonists,  who  came  to  Carolina  to 
seek  a  change  of  fortune,  and  of  whom  Rev.  Dr. 
Hawks  writes:  "  The  outcasts  of  London  prisons 
and  the  sw^eepings  of  London  kennels,  then,  as 
now,  doubtless  could  furnish  their  quota  to  every 
shipload  of  adventurers.  The  dissipated  scions 
of  respectable  families  were  gladly  sent  off,  lest 
they  should  finally  tarnish  ancestral  honors  by  a 
felon's  fate  at  home:  the  inmates  of  the  vile  slums 
and  alleys  of  the  metropolis  were  but  too  glad  to 
escape  the  grasp  of  violated  law;  to  leave  a  coun- 
try where  they  had  nothing  tO;^gain  and  every- 
thing to  lose,  because  they  had  reached  an  infamy 
and  attained  to  a  notoriety  in  guilt,  which  left 
them  no  further  hope  of  committing  crime  with 
impunit3\  In  short,  we  may  not  doubt,  that  some 
of  the  earliest  colonists  belonged  to  that  class 
which  the  poet  has  described  as  '  the  cankers  of  a 
long  peace,  and  a  calm  world.'"  [Hawks'  History 
of  North  Carolina  J  vol.  i,  p.  253.) 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  191 

Section  4-  Great  ivant  of  the  Means  of  Grace  among 
the  early  German  colonists  in  the  Carolinas. 

"  The  harvest  truly  is  plenteous,  but  the  laborers 
are  few,"  has  been  the  cry  for  more  than  eighteen 
centuries,  and  the  want  of  ministers  of  the  gospel 
is  continued  to  be  felt  up  to  the  present  time,  but 
at  no  time  and  among  no  people  to  a  more  alarm- 
ing extent  than  among  the  early  German  settlers 
in  the  Carolinas.  The  Dutch  colony  on  James 
Island,  South  Carolina,  the  Swiss  and  Palatine 
settlers  in  Newberne,  North  Carolina,  the  German 
and  Swiss  colonists  in  Purysburg,  South  Carolina, 
never  did  have  a  minister  of  the  gospel  of  their 
own  faith  among  them,  and  were  consequently 
lost  entirely  to  the  Church  of  tlieir  fathers;  whilst 
all  the  other  German  settlements  in  these  two 
Provinces  suffered  more  or  less,  and  some  for  a 
long  time,  for  the  want  of  the  regular  adminis- 
tration of  the  means  of  grace;  and  when  German 
ministers  did  eventually  come  to  labor  among 
their  brethren  of  the  same  faith  with  themselves, 
the  enem}^  had  already  sown  his  tares  among  the 
wheat,  which  caused  great  spiritual  degeneracy. 
From  A.D.  1674  to  1737,  that  is  to  say,  from  the 
settlement  of  the  Dutch  colonists  to  the  arrival  of 
the  first  German  minister  in  Orano^eburo^,  South 
Carolina,  embracing  a  period  of  sixty-three  yeai's, 
during  which  time  a  number  of  important  German 
settlements  had  been  made,  not  a  single  minister 
of  the  gospel  of  their  own  faith  labored  among 
these  settlers  in  that  entire  territory;  and  after 


192  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

that  time  their  pastors  were  so  few  iu  number  that 
comparatively  little  good  could  be  effected. 

In  some  localities  temporary  houses  of  worship 
were  erected,  and  grants  of  land  were  secured  for 
that  purpose;  or  in  the  absence  of  these,  school- 
houses  and  barns  Avere  used  for  divine  service, 
generally  conducted  by  some  pious  laj-man  or  the 
school-teacher,  who  read  a  sermon  or  devotional 
essay  from  such  books  as  constituted  the  library 
of  the  early  settlers.  Great  desire  was  at  first 
awakened  to  enjoy  the  preaching  of  the  Word 
and  the  administration  of  the  sacraments,  which 
want  was  occasionally^  supplied  by  very  unworthy 
men,  who  were  generally  denominated  '*  straggling 
preachers,"  of  whom  Dr.  E.  W.  Caruthers,  in  his 
"Life  of  Rev.  David  Caldwell,  D.D.,"  speaks  as 
follows :  "  Hardly  any  of  these  (preachers)  were 
calculated  to  advance  the  interests  of  vital  piety, 
or  to  elevate  the  character  of  the  people.  Some 
of  them  had  no  kind  of  authority  to  preach,  and 
no  claims  on  the  confidence  of  the  churches  on 
the  score  of  piety ;  but  came  out  here,  either  from 
the  Northern  States  or  from  German}^,  pretending 
to  be  preachers ;  exercised  an  assumed  authority, 
and  acted  as  self-constituted  pastors  of  the  churches, 
or  went  from  place  to  place,  imposing  on  the  peo- 
ple who  knew^  no  better,  or  were  glad  to  meet 
with  any  one  who  came  to  them  as  a  minister  of 
Christ." 

The  eff'ect  of  such  great  want  of  the  means  of 
grace,  or  the  improper  administration  of  them, 
can  be  readilv  imagined;    it  occasioned  at  first 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  193 

mnch  sorro\Y  and  regret  among  the  better  class  of 
settlers,  wlio  became  greatly  dissatisfied  with  their 
new  homes  on  account  of  this  deficiency;  and,  as 
in  Saxe-Gotha,  South  Carolina,  gave  intimation 
that  they  would  likewise  remove  from  their  present 
location  to  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania,  where 
they  could  enjoy  these  spiritual  advantages,  as 
many  had  heretofore  done.  In  Parysburg, 
Charleston  and  elsewhere,  a  number  of  German 
settlers  did  leave  for  this  very  reason,  and  located 
themselves  among  the  Salzburgers  of  Ebenezer, 
Georgia,  who  were  supplied  with  two  efiicient  and 
pious  pastors,  the  Revs.  Bolzius  and  Gronau. 
Others  again  grew^  cold  and  indifterent  to  their 
spiritual  interests  and  welfare,  whilst  not  a  few 
abandoned  themselves  to  the  dictates  of  their  own 
corrupt  natures,  and  fell  from  that  grace  and 
those  pious  principles  of  which  they  w^ere  once 
possessed;  permitting  their  children  to  grow  up 
without  a  proper  knowledge  of  God,  of  their  duty, 
and  of  the  way  of  salvation. 

In  one  locality  a  singular  heresy  made  its  ap- 
pearance among  a  number  of  settlers,  which  ter- 
minated in  a  very  tragical  afiair,  as  found  related 
in  the  succeeding  section,  and  may  readily  be  un- 
derstood as  a  very  natural  consequence  of  the  want 
of  the  means  of  grace  administered  in  the  regularly- 
appointed  and  divinely-ordered  way. 

In  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  the  German  set- 
tlers fared  somewhat  better;  it  being  the  centre  of 
commerce  in  that  Province,  and  having  more  in- 
tercourse with  the  European  world,  ministers  of 

17 


194  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  gospel,  wlio  first  landed  there  on  their  way  to 
their  respective  fields  of  labor  in  otlier  parts  of 
America,  occasionally  supplied  the  German  citizens 
there  with  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  and  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  holy  sacraments;  Rev.  Bolzius 
visited  them  in  1734,  and  accomplished  much  good 
in  preaching  and  administering  the  communion  to 
them  for  the  first  time;  Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg, 
who  had  been  sent  by  the  Mission  Society  of  Ilalle 
to  labor  in  Pennsylvania,  landed  in  Charleston, 
September  21,  1742,  and  whilst  tarrying  there  he 
preached  the  gospel  and  catechized  the  children  ; 
Eevs.  Rabenhorst  and  Gerock,  the  one  on  his  way 
to  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  and  the  other  destined  for 
Pennsylvania,  likewise  visited  the  German  citizens 
of  Charleston,  and  labored  a  short  time  for  their 
spiritual  welfare,  A.D.  1753;  in  this  manner  was 
the  flame  of  true  religion  preserved  from  becoming 
entirely  extinguished  among  them,  until  they  se- 
cured the  services  of  a  regular  pastor  in  1755. 
But  in  the  rural  districts  of  South  Carolina,  the 
spiritual  condition  of  the  German  settlers  was 
most  deplorable,  inasmuch  as,  previous  to  the  year 
1737,  not  a  single  German  pastor  labored  among 
them. 

The  Lutherans  in  Saxe-Gotha  Township,  num- 
bering two  hundred  and  eighty  souls,  wrote  to  the 
Ebenezer  pastors,  in  1750,  for  a  minister  of  their 
own  faith;  but  their  urgent  plea  was  not  regarded, 
which  greatly  discouraged  them.  I^Teed  any  one 
be  astonished  at  the  legitimate  effects  of  so  deplor- 
able a  want  of  the  means  of  ojrace  as  was  witnessed 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  195 

at  that  time  in  the  Province  of  South  Carolina. 
The  settlements  of  Germans  from  Pennsylvania 
in  the  interior  of  l!Torth  Carolina  were  not  com- 
menced until  about  this  time,  therefore  they  do 
not  now  claim  our  attention;  but  the  [N'ewberne 
colony  of  Swiss  and  Germans  in  1710,  as  has  been 
stated  before,  was  entirely  neglected,  and  became, 
as  a  necessary  consequence,  also  entirely  lost  to 
the  Church  of  their  fathers. 

Section  5,  An  Account  of  the  Weber  (Weaver)  Heresy. 

In  Saxe-Gotha  Township,  Lexington  County, 
South  Carolina,  and  "  in  the  neighborhood  of 
what  is  now  called  Younginer's  Ferry,"  there 
ori2:inated  a  sect  amono-  the  Swiss  and  German 
settlers,  who  were  called  Weberites.  Their  heresy 
was  of  so  revolting  a  nature,  that  it  would  be  de- 
sirable to  pass  it  bj^  in  silence,  if  it  could  be  done 
without  doing  injustice  to  a  faithful  and  correct 
narration  of  historical  facts. 

Pev.  Dr.  Hazelius  gives  us  a  brief  sketch  of  the 
doings  of  these  Weberites  in  his  American  Lu- 
theran Church,  p.  103;  and  the  Pev.  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg has  also  furnished  us  a  more  extended  ac- 
count of  them  in  his  journal,  translated  and  pub- 
lished in  vol.  i  of  the  Evangelical  Peview,  dating 
their  transactions  as  having  occurred  in  the  year 
1760;  nevertheless,  the  origin  of  this  sect  must 
have  taken  place  some  time  before,  as  that  is  the 
date  of  the  culmination  of  their  heresy  into  the 
crime,  which  brought  their  leader  to  suffer  the 
just  penalty  of  the  law. 


106  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

•Dr.  Muhlenberg's  account  is  as  follows:  "Mr. 
Strobel,  the  son-in-law  of  Rev.  Mr.  Martin,  a 
wealth}^  tanner,  sent  for  me  in  a  chaise,  to  convey 
me  out  of  town  to  dine  with  him.  lie  told  me, 
among  other  things,  a  remarkable  history  of  an 
abominable  sect,  which  had  arisen  among  the 
Germans  in  South  Carolina,  A.D.  1760-1,  and  had 
some  similarity  with  KnipperdoUing  and  Jan  Van 
Leiden.  They  committed  murders,  on  which  ac- 
count one  of  them,  named  Jacob  Weber,  who 
called  himself  a  god,  and  slew  a  person,  was 
hanged.  Their  founder  is  said  to  have  been  Peter 
Schmidt.  The  sect  originated  at  Saluda  Fork, 
about  one  hundred  miles  from  Charleston  (125 
or  130  miles). 

"Jacob  Weber  was  a  Swiss.  He  first  became 
an  exhorter,  then  he  advanced  himself  still  farther, 
but  before  his  end  he  came  to  his  senses,  and  saw 
his  error. 

"The  people  in  the  country,  in  general,  grew 
up  without  schools  and  instruction.  Occasionally 
a  self-taught  (auto-didacter)  minister  may  labor 
for  awhile  amongst  them,  yet  it  continues  only  a 
short  time.  The  people  are  wild,  and  continue  to 
grow  wilder,  for  what  does  it  profit  them  to  hear 
a  sermon  every  four,  six,  or  twelve  weeks,  if  in 
early  youth  the  foundation  of  Divine  Truth  had 
not  been  laid  ?  The  aforesaid  sect  had  so  far  ob- 
tained the  supremacy  that  several  families  united 
with  it  for  fear  of  their  lives;  numbers  of  both 
sexes  went  about  uncovered  and  naked,  and  prac- 
ticed the  most  abominable  wantonness.     One  of 


IN  NOETH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  197 

them  pretended  to  be  God  the  Father,  another 
the  Son,  and  a  third  the  Holy  Spirit;  and  the  pre- 
tended Father,  having  quarrelled  with  the  Son, 
repudiated  the  pretended  Son,  chained  him  in  the 
forest,  declared  him  to  be  Satan,  and  finally  gath- 
ered his  gang,  who  beat  and  trampled  on  the  poor 
man  until  he  died;  he  is  reported  also  to  have 
killed  the  pretended  Holy  Ghost  in  bed.  A  report 
of  these  circumstances  having  reached  the  au- 
thorities in  Charleston,  the  militia  were  ordered  to 
arrest  the  pretended  deity,  when  he  was  tried,  con- 
demned, and  executed  upon  the  gallows. 

*'The  English  inhabitants  scoffed  about  it,  and 
said  the  Germans  had  nothing  to  fear,  their  Devil 
having  been  killed,  and  their  God  having  been 
hanged.  Such  are  the  fruits  of  not  inculcating 
the  doctrine  of  Divine  Truth  early  in  youth,  and 
of  leaving  man  to  himself  Rom.  1  :  21-32.  This 
sect  spread  from  South  to  i^orth  Carolina,  thence 
to  Maryland  and  Virginia,  among  the  German 
and  English  population,  and  has  likewise  left  some 
seed  of  this  heresy  in  Charleston.  Upon  this  gross 
Satanic  tragedy  a  more  subtle  temptation  followed. 
Quakers,  Anabaptists,  &c.,  spread  themselves  in 
the  country  regions  around,  and  appear  to  be  better 
suited  to  the  circumstances  of  the  land  at  this 
time. 

*•  October  9th.  To-day  I  received  the  original 
copy  of  a  letter  dictated  by  Jacob  Weber  in  prison 
before  his  death,  for  the  benefit  of  his  childreDj 
which  reads  as  follows: 


198  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

'''^  Jacob  Weber^s  Confession. 

'''April  16th,  1761,  being  imprisoned  and  ironed, 
it  occurred  to  rae  and  the  jailor  to  transmit  to  my 
beloved  children  a  sketch  of  my  mournful  life.  I, 
Jacob  Weber,  was  born  in  Switzerland,  in  Canton 
Zurich,  in  the  county  of  Knomauer,  in  the  parish 
of  Stifferschweil,  and  was  raised  and  educated  in 
the  Eeformed  Church.  In  the  fourteenth  year  of 
my  age  I  journeyed  with  my  brother  to  South 
Carolina,  leaving  my  parents ;  and  soon  after  my 
arrival  I  lost  my  brother  by  death.  Thus  I  was 
forsaken  of  man,  and  without  father  or  mother. 
But  God  had  compassion  on  me  amid  much 
trouble  and  sorrow.  He  planted  the  fear  of  the 
Lord  in  my  heart,  so  that  I  had  more  pleasure  in 
the  Lord,  in  godliness,  and  the  Word  of  God,  than 
in  the  world.  I  was  often  troubled  about  my  sal- 
vation when  I  reflected  how  strict  an  account  God 
would  require,  that  I  must  enter  into  judgment, 
and  know  not  how  it  w^ould  result.  Although 
God  drew  me  with  his  grace,  I  found  also  the  re- 
verse in  my  corrupt  nature,  which  was  excited 
with  the  love  of  the  world,  viz.,  of  riches,  honors, 
and  an  easy  life. 

"'Mankind  love  a  social  life,  and  as  the  Lord 
drew  me  back  in  many  wonderful  ways,  I  came, 
therefore,  nearer  to  him;  notwithstanding  I  always 
attended  to  my  religious  services  and  prayer,  but 
with  a  heart  cold  and  averted  from  God.  Through 
such  exercises  of  the  heart  I  arrived  at  a  knowl- 
edge of  my  sins,  and  learned  how  awfully  the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  199 

human  race  had  fallen  from  God,  and  how  low  all 
mankind,  without  exception,  are  sunken  in  de- 
pravity. As  soon  as  I  experienced  this,  I  earnestly 
besought  God  day  and  night  for  forgiveness,  for 
the  Holy  Spirit,  for  a  pure  heart,  and  for  saving 
faith,  and  I  felt  the  necessity  of  retirement  to  re- 
strain my  thoughts,  and  to  prevent  the  Divine 
work  from  being  hindered  in  me.  In  this  retire- 
ment I  forgot  the  turmoil  of  the  world.  In  this 
light  I  regarded  all  vain  desires  and  thoughts  and 
all  human  works  as  by  nature  damnable  in  the 
sight  of  God.  Fear  and  sorrow  now  seized  upon 
my  poor  soul,  and  I  thought,  what  shall  I  do  to 
be  saved  ?  It  was  shown  me  that  nothing  would 
suffice  but  being  born  again  of  water  and  of  the 
Spirit.  Realizing  that  I  could  not  be  saved  in 
any  other  way,  I  prayed  still  more  earnestly,  and 
it  was  shown  me  still  more  plainly  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  in  my  heart  how  sinful  I  was  (Rom.  7),  so 
that  I  stood  there  before  the  judgment  of  God; 
but  the  judgment  of  God  became  manifest  in  me, 
so  that  I  judged  myself,  and  confessed  that  I  had 
deserved  a  tliousand-fold  to  be  cast  from  the  pres- 
ence of  God,  and  wondered  that  the  forbearance 
of  the  Lord  had  not  long  since  hurled  me,  poor 
and  condemned  wretch,  into  the  lowest  pit  of  de- 
struction; and  then  too,  I  saw  the  whole  world  lay 
in  sin.  Feeling  myself  so  lost,  I  cast  myself  en- 
tirely upon  the  mercy  of  God  to  lead  me  according 
to  his  holy  will  and  pleasure,  wdiether  unto  life  or 
death,  if  he  would  only  be  gracious  unto  my  poor 


200  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

soul  for  Christ's  sake,  and  pardon  my  sin,  and 
purify  my  heart  from  all  uncleanness.  Thus  I  lay 
at  the  feet  of  Jesus  with  all  my  heart  in  submis- 
sion, sighing  and  praying  night  and  day  for  his 
grace,  and  so  continued  for  several  days,  until  I 
had  passed  from  death  unto  life.  Then  Jesus  re- 
vealed himself  unto  my  soul.  Then  there  was 
great  joy  in  heaven  over  me,  a  returning  sinner. 
Then  all  my  sins  Avere  forgiven  me,  and  I  was  full 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  rejoiced  with  a  joy  un- 
speakably great.  This  occurred,  or  I  experienced 
this  joy,  A.D.  1756,  in  the  month  of  May.  This 
grace  caused  me  to  des^Dise  the  joy  of  the  world, 
and  to  disregard  its  reproach,  and  kept  me,  thence- 
forth, continually  with  my  surety,  Jesus,  amid 
many  temptations  not  now  to  be  mentioned,  until 
finally  I  found  rest  for  my  soul.  This  peace  and 
communion  with  God  I  possessed  about  two  years, 
under  every  burden  of  affliction,  for  I  had  the 
grace  to  enable  me,  under  all  circumstances,  to 
submit  my  will  to  the  mercy  of  God.  Through 
the  grace  which  was  in  me  I  could  govern  tem- 
poral goods  without  danger  to  my  soul.  Upon 
this  followed  the  great  misery  and  awful  fall  into 
sin,  already,  alas!  too  well  known.  The  devil 
bringing  me  into  a  greater  temptation  and  fall 
than  was  ever  known,  of  which  Peter  Schmidt  was 
the  origin  and  instrument.  After  this,  by  the  provi- 
dence of  God,  I  was  captured  and  cast  into  prison, 
that  I.  might  recover  my  reason,  come  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  my  great  sins,  and  confess  them  before  God, 


IN    NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  201 

that  thus  it  might  awaken  great  wretchedness  in 
mj  soul,  humble  me  before  God  and  man,  yea, 
beneath  all  creatures,  yea,  that  I  might  account 
myself  as  the  poorest  worm.  I  often  thought 
each  and  every  person  too  good  to  speak  to  me, 
and  interest  himself  in  me.  ]N"evertheless  I  sousrht 
cordially  the  forgiveness  of  my  sins  in  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb  of  God,  my  Redeemer,  who  loved  me 
and  died  for  all  my  sins,  and  for  his  righteousness' 
sake  arose,  all  which  I  heartily  believe,  because  I 
experience  again  the  witness  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
which  testifies  unto  my  spirit  that  I  am  a  child  of 
God.  And  now,  my  children,  beloved  in  the  Lord, 
I  must  leave  this  world,  and,  perhaps,  behold 
your  face  no  more  in  this  life.  I  commend  you, 
therefore,  to  the  protection  and  mercy  of  God ! 
Pray  without  ceasing,  learn  and  read;  injure  no 
one  willingly  and  wilfully  while  you  live;  labor 
industriously  and  faithfully  according  to  your 
ability;  then,  if  we  should  meet  no  more  in  this 
world,  we  may  hope  to  meet  each  other  in  heaven, 
in  the  world  to  come;  which  may  the  triune  God, 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  grant  to  you  for  the 
sake  of  the  crucified  Jesus,  Amen.  Such  cunning 
and  celerity  does  Satan  possess  as  to  cause  so  great 
a  schism  and  injury  even  among  the  children  of 
God,  and  to  lead  tliem  astray,  and  make  them  fall 
so  suddenly  against  their  knowledge  and  consent. 
May  God  preserve  all  persons  from  so  great  a  fall, 
and  trample  Satan  under  foot,  for  Christ's  sake, 
Amen.  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be 
with  you  and  all  persons,  Amen.     And  I  beseech 


202  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

all  persons  who  have  been  injured  by  me  to  for- 
give me,  for  Christ's  sake. 
'' '  Written  or  dictated  by 

"'Jacob  Waeber. 

•"April  16th,  17G1.'" 

Dr.  Hazelius'  account  of  this  tragic  affair  is  as 
follows: 

"It  was  about  this  time  that  a  number  of  our 
(German)  people,  living  on  the  banks  of  the  Saluda 
River,  in  South  Carolina,  being  destitute  of  minis- 
terial instruction,  agreed  to  assemble  from  time  to 
time  for  singing,  prayer,  the  reading  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  mutual  edification.  This  was  as  it 
should  be,  but  the  enemy  soon  sowed  tares  among 
the  wheat,  by  introducing  spiritual  pride  among 
the  small  flock.  One  man,  by  the  name  of  Wea- 
ver, personated  Christ,  another  the  Hol}^  Spirit,  a 
certain  w^oman,  the  wife  of  Weaver,  the  Virgin 
Mary,  and  one  poor  fellow  was  doomed  to  repre- 
sent Satan.  The  curiosity  of  the  people  became 
highly  excited  by  the  strange  proceedings  on  Sa- 
luda River,  in  the  neighborhood  of  what  is  now 
called  Younginer's  Ferry.  Excess  followed  excess, 
until  at  length  Weaver,  representing  either  Christ 
or  God,  ordered,  in  virtue  of  his  dignity,  that 
Satan  should  be  chained  in  a  subterranean  hole, 
and  finally  that  he  should  be  destroyed.  For  this 
purpose  they  met,  placed  the  unfortunate  man  in 
a  bed,  covered  him  with  pillows,  on  which  some 
seated  themselves,  while  others  stamped  with  their 
feet  on  the  bed  until  the  life  of  the  man  had  be- 


IN  NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  203 

come  extinct.  The  corpse  was  then  taken  out  of 
bed,  and  thrown  into  a  burning  pile  of  wood,  to 
be  consumed  to  ashes.  The  perpetrators  of  this 
crime  were  taken  to  Charleston  and  tried.  Wea- 
ver was  found  guilty,  and  suffered  the  penalty  of 
the  law  on  the  gallows.     His  wife  was  pardoned." 

The  Eev.  Christian  Theus  furnished  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg with  a  more  detailed  description  of  this  sect 
of  Weberites,  as  he  was  well  acquainted  with  their 
doings,  having  lived  about  twenty-five  miles  from 
the  place  wdiere  the  murder  occurred.  At  a  cer- 
tain time  he  came  unexpectedly  into  their  meeting, 
and  found  Jacob  Weber  contending  that  he  was 
God,  and  the  said  Peter  Schmidt  insisting  that  he 
himself  was  Christ,  and  that  the  unconverted  mem- 
bers must  be  healed  through  his  stripes. 

Pastor  Theus  opposing  such  blasphemy,  the 
leaders  became  enraged,  and  threatened  his  life, 
and  counselled  with  their  rabble  whether  to  drown 
or  hang  him.  He  escaped,  however,  from  their 
hands,  fled  to  the  river,  and  fortunately  found  a 
negro  with  his  canoe  at  the  shore,  sprang  into  it, 
was  conveyed  across,  and  thus  saved  his  life. 

All  traces  of  this  abominable  heresy  have  long 
since  been  obliterated ;  neither  are  there  even  any 
descendants  of  Jacob  Weber  and  Peter  Schmidt 
to  be  found  in  the  Saluda  Fork.  To  what  region 
of  country  they  emigrated,  or  what  was  their  sub- 
sequent history,  is  not  known.  The  object  of  his- 
tory in  preserving  the  record  of  such  deeds  is  that 
it  might  serve  as  a  warning  to  all  not  to  depart 
from  the  truth  as  revealed  in  God's  word,  even  in 


204  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

their  religion.  The  Bible  is  given  as  a  "lamp  to 
our  feet  and  a  light  to  our  path,"  and  the  promise 
is  there  that  the  wayfaring  man,  though  a  fool,  need 
not  err  therein ;  but  whosoever  despises  the  re- 
vealed light  will  soon  glide  into  very  grievous  and 
dangerous  errors.  Sincerity  is  no  proof  of  the 
purity  of  faith,  and  no  guide  to  man's  actions.  That 
Weber  was  sincere,  his  confession,  which  he  made 
with  eternity  in  view,  fully  proves;  notwithstand- 
ing his  sincerity,  so  great  was  his  deception  in 
spiritual  things,  that  he  became  guilty  of  the  most 
horrid  blasphemy  and  of  the  greatest  crime  known 
to  the  law. 

This  narrative  also  demonstrates  the  value  of 
an  evangelical,  educated  and  faithful  ministry  of 
the  Gospel,  an  institution  which  has  been  divinely 
appointed,  through  whose  ministrations  God  is 
pleased  to  bless  mankind  and  keep  them  in  the 
way  of  truth  and  peace.  In  such  occurrences  as 
these,  the  infidel  is  rebuked  in  his  opposition  to  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel ;  man  soon  degenerates  and 
becomes  capable  of  committing  all  manner  of  ex- 
cesses, where  he  is  not  restrained  by  the  influence 
of  the  Gospel.  In  this  localit}^,  where  the  Weber- 
ites  had  their  origin,  and  about  that  period  of  time, 
A.D.  1758,  according  to  the  import  of  Weber's 
confession,  the  Gospel  was  but  seldom  preached, 
and  the  effects  of  such  neglect  soon  manifested 
themselves;  the  people  generally  gave  a  loose  rein 
to  their  passions,  rioted  in  their  wantonness,  and 
actually  believed^that  in  doing  so  they  were  ren- 
dering service  to  God.     If  in  the  commencement 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  205 

of  this  settlement  the  people  would  have  been 
blessed  with  the  faithful  labors  of  an  evangelical 
and  intelligent  pastor,  doubtless  such  extravagance 
in  religion  and  morals  never  would  have  been 
manifested  there,  as  is  sufficiently  proved  by  the 
condition  of  those  settlements  where  religious  ad- 
vantages were  enjoyed;  so  likewise,  where  the 
young  are  well  trained  and  indoctrinated,  depart- 
ures from  the  principles  of  a  pure  faith  and  cor- 
rect morals  are  not  likely  to  occur.  Occasional 
ministrations  of  the  word  and  the  sacraments  are 
not  sufficient  in  any  community ;  orthodox  churches 
should  be  established  in  reach  of  every  family,  and 
a  pastor  should  labor  continually  among  his  people, 
both  at  the  fireside  and  upon  the  pulpit,  if  he  ex- 
pects to  accomplish  permanent  good,  for  it  appears 
that  the  want  of  such  constant  ministrations  had 
a  serious  effect  upon  this  community,  at  the  time 
these  criminal  occurrences  took  place. 

Section  6.  History  of  St.  Joint's  Lutheran  Churchy. 
Charleston^  South  Carolina^  to  the  close  of  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

At  the  period  of  time  when  the  first  Lutheran 
Church  in  Charleston  was  established,  so  far  as 
the  records  now  extant  appear  to  indicate,  there 
was  no  longer  a  single  Lutheran  congregation  nor 
Lutheran  minister  in  the  Province  of  South  Caro- 
lina. The  Rev.  John  Giessendanner,  of  Orange- 
burg, having  become  discouraged,  and  dreading 
further  annoyance  from  such  straggling  preachers 


206  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

afs  Zauberbiihler,  connected  himself  and  bis  con- 
gregation with  the  established  Church  of  England 
in  1749;  and  the  Rev.  Christian  Theus  labored  as 
a  German  Reformed  minister  in  Saxe-Gotha 
Township,  near  the  Congaree  River. 

The  early  records  of  the  Charleston  Lutheran 
Church  are  mainly  derived  from  the  journal  of 
Rev.  H.  M.  Muhlenberg,  D.D.,  who  labored  in 
Pennsylvania,  and  who  was  sent,  A.D.  1774,  by 
the  "  Society  for  Propagating  the  Gospel "  on  a 
second  visit  to  the  South  to  adjust  certain  difficul- 
ties, which  had  arisen  in  the  congregation  atEben- 
ezer,  Georgia;  and  on  his  way  thither  he  spent 
some  time  in  Charleston,  and  took  notes  of  the 
principal  occurrences  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
that  city,  as  well  as  of  the  German  churches  gen- 
erally, located  in  South  Carolina.  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg's journal  was  translated  and  published  in 
the  Evangelical  Review  in  1850,  by  a  descendant 
of  his,  the  Rev.  J.  W.  Richards,  D.D.,  then  Lu- 
theran pastor  at  Easton,  Pennsylvania. 

Dr.  Ramsay,  in  the  second  volume  of  his  "History 
of  South  Carolina,"  reprinted  edition,  p.  23,  states: 
"Their  first  minister,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Luft,  arrived 
in  1752."  How  much  credit  is  to  be  given  to  this 
statement,  the  writer  is  not  prepared  to  say;  but 
it  appears  singular  that  Dr.  Muhlenberg,  who  ex- 
amined the  records  of  this  Lutheran  Church  in 
Charleston  thirtj^-four  years  before  Ramsay,  and 
associated  freely  with  its  members  for  five  weeks, 
arranging  their  church  afiairs,  should  not  have 
mentioned  the  Rev.  Mr.  Luffs  name  in  his  jour- 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  207 

nal.  However,  if  the  Rev.  Mr.  Luft  was  the  first 
pastor  of  this  people,  the^^  certainly  had  no  house 
of  worship  of  their  own  at  the  time,  and  very  prob- 
ably no  regularly  organized  congregation,  for  even 
Ramsay  states:  "In  the  year  1759  they  began  to 
build  a  house  of  worship  themselves,''  and  that 
event  took  place  during  Rev.  Friederichs'  minis- 
try in  Charleston. 

Rev.  John  George  Friederichs  arrived  in  Char- 
leston, South  Carolina,  about  the  year  1755  or  6, 
and  gathered  the  Germans  residing  there  into  a 
congregation,  which  he  afterwards  served  for  sev- 
eral years ;  he  may,  therefore,  justly  be  regarded 
as  the  founder  of  the  first  Lutheran  Church  in 
Charleston.  The  elders  of  the  French  (Huguenot) 
congregation  kindly  oflfered  and  granted  the  use 
of  their  church  for  divine  service  to  our  German 
brethren,  when  not  needed  for  their  own  worship; 
they  likewise  extended  the  right  of  sepulture  to 
the  Germans  in  their  own  graveyard,  all  of  which 
was  accepted  with  gratitude. 

"Rev.  Friederichs  labored  hard,  and,  together 
with  the  elders  and  wardens,  exerted  himself  so  as 
to  procure  a  place  in  the  town  for  a  German  Lu- 
theran church  and  graveyard.  He  was  acquainted 
among  the  English  and  beloved  by  them,  and  col- 
lected among  them  towards  the  erection  of  a  house 
of  worship.  He  desired  the  church  to  be  built  of 
brick,  which  would  have  been  best,  but  several 
elders  and  members  outvoted  him,  and  caused  it 
to  be  built  of  wood."  The  enterprise  so  far  suc- 
ceeded as  to  have  the  corner-stone  of  the  new  edi- 


208  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

fice  laid  on  the  17th  of  December,  1759.  Soon 
after  this  event,  Rev.  Friederichs  resigned,  and 
took  charge  of  several  congregations  in  the  coun- 
try, locating  himself  in  Amelia  Township,  Orange- 
burg District,  South  Carolina. 

After  the  removal  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Friederichs  the 
congregation  secured  the  services  of  a  Rev.  Mr. 
Wartman,  who  was  a  highly  educated  divine,  and 
is  said  to  have  been  an  animated  preacher,  yet  his 
usefulness  was  very  much  injured,  on  account  of 
his  having  been  possessed  of  a  very  fiery  and  chol- 
eric disposition,  which  unhappy  temperament  had 
been  the  cause  of  his  short  stay  in  several  congre- 
gations in  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  where  he 
had  frequently  exposed  his  temper,  and  exhausted 
both  himself  and  his  people.  This  was  also  the 
reason  of  his  short  stay  in  Charleston,  where  he 
might  have  been  exceedingly  useful,  as  he  was 
possessed  of  the  other  necessary  qualifications  of 
a  pastor,  had  he  been  enabled  to  control  his  un- 
happy disposition.  He  remained  but  two  years 
and  then  took  up  his  residence  in  the  country. 

The  fourth  pastor  of  this  congregation  was  the 
Rev.  John  Nicholas  Martin,  a  self-taught  man, 
wdio  is  said  to  have  been  ordained  by  the  Salz- 
burg pastors  in  Georgia,  and  who  enjoyed  the 
reputation  of  having  been  a  sensible  and  indus- 
trious laborer  in  Christ's  vineyard.  He  took 
charge  of  St.  John's  Church,  I^ovember  24th, 
1763,  and  served  it  for  three  years  and  three 
months;  during  his  ministrj^  the  new  church  edi- 
fice was  completed,  which  had  been  in  course  of 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  209 

construction  over  four  years,  and  was  dedicated 
on  the  24th  of  June,  1764,  John  the  Baptist's  day. 
The  officiating  clergymen  on  this  occasion  v/ere 
Kev.  J.  G.  Friederichs,  the  founder  of  this  congre- 
gation, and  the  Rev.  J.  I^.  Martin,  the  pastor  in 
charge.  The  dedication  sermon  was  preached 
from  the  text,  Luke  1  :  68-70 :  "  Blessed  be  the 
Lord  God  of  Israel ;  for  he  hath  visited  and  re- 
deemed his  people,  and  hath  raised  up  a  horn  of 
salvation  for  us  in  the  house  of  his  sei*vant  David; 
as  he  spake  by  the  mouth  of  his  holy  prophets, 
which  have  been  since  the  world  began."  This 
church  was  a  small  wooden  building,  situated  in 
the  rear  of  where  the  present  church  stands,  and 
"was  an  antiquated  building  of  a  peculiar  con- 
struction, resembling  some  of  the  old  churches  in 
the  rural  districts  of  Germany;"  a  representation 
of  it  is  still  preserved,  "suspended  in  the  vestry- 
room  of  the  present  church;  and  for  uniqueness 
of  architecture,  as  well  as  for  its  value  as  a  relic  of 
the  past,  excites  no  little  notice." 

During  the  ministry  of  Rev.  Martin  in  this  con- 
gregation, a  large  number  of  worthy  Germans 
organized  themselves  into  a  "  German  Benevolent 
Society,"  now  known  as  the  "German  Friendly 
Society,"  which  appears  to  have  been  in  a  most 
flourishing  condition  from  its  commencement  to 
the  present  time.  Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  gives  a 
glowing  description  of  this  praiseworthy  society, 
and  informs  us,  that  it  was  founded  January  15th, 
1766,  and  had  increased  in  a  little  more  than  eight 
years  to  "upwards  of  eighty  members,  living  in 

18 


210  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  town  and  country,  of  whom  upwards  of  fifty 
are  still  living."  Daring  those  years  their  funded 
capital  had  accumulated  to  £400  sterling,  the  in- 
terest of  which  is  to  be  ''applied  for  the  relief  of 
every  such  poor  member,  or  of  his  widow  and  or- 
phans, as  shall  have  been  connected  seven  years 
with  the  Society,  and  have  paid  their  contribu- 
tions. This  commendable  Society  is,  in  a  measure, 
the  flower  and  crown  of  the  German  nation  in  this 
place." 

By  special  invitation  of  the  "heads  of  this  So- 
cietj^"  and  escorted  to  their  place  of  meeting  by 
the  Vice-President  and  Treasurer,  Eev.  Dr.  Muh- 
lenberg dined  with  the  members,  and  thus  became 
acquainted  with  the  most  influential  Germans  in 
the  place.  He  speaks  also  very  highly  of  their 
manner  of  conducting  the  business  of  this  Society, 
and  gives  the  names  of  the  members  present  at 
that  meeting. 

Early  in  the  year  1767,  Eev.  J.  ]N".  Martin  took 
leave  of  this  congregation,  and  labored  in  the  Fork 
of  the  Saluda  and  Broad  Rivers,  where  it  is  known 
that  he  still  labored  some  seven  years  later,  in 
1774,  as  his  name  is  incidentally  mentioned  in 
that  connection  in  Dr.  M.'s  journal,  and  the  pre- 
sumption is,  that  he  became  the  Lutheran  pastor 
of  the  consfreo^ations  in  the  Fork  soon  after  his  de- 
parture  from  Charleston. 

The  elders  and  wardens  of  St.  John's  Church 
now  applied  to  Rev.  Dr.  Wachsell,  in  London,  be- 
seeching him  to  send  them  a  regular  teacher  and 
pastor,  and  obtained  through  his  instrumentality 


TN  NORTH   AND  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  211 

the  Hev.  John  Severin  Hahnbaum,  to  whom  a 
call  was  extended  on  the  28th  of  January,  1767. 
He  arrived  with  his  family,  and  took  charge  of 
the  cbiirch  on  the  12th  of  June  of  the  same  year; 
unfortunately,  however,  he  was  either  in  infirm 
health  when  he  arrived  in  Charleston,  or  the  cli- 
mate there  disagreed  with  him,  for  he  was  often 
indisposed,  and  lived  only  a  few  years.  During 
the  first  year  of  his  ministry,  "  the  following  per- 
sons were  the  elders  or  vestrymen  of  the  church  : 
Messrs.  Johannes  Svvint,  Melchior  Werley, 
Philip  Mensing,  Abraham  Speidel,  Martin  Miil- 
ler,  J.  Shutterling,  Jacob  Breidell,  John  Kirchner, 
and  Michael  Kalteisen.  One  year  later  four  war- 
dens were  elected,  viz.,  Messrs.  Joseph  Kimmel, 
Henry  Lindauer,  Godrnan,  and  Jury. 

"In  1768  the  .Hon.  John  Paul  Grimpke  pre- 
sented  the  church  with  a  silver  plate  of  the  weight 
of  one  pound,  which  was  appropriated  by  the 
council  for  gathering  the  collections  ever}-  Sunday. 
So  also  did  Capt.  Alexander  Gillon,  who  had  re- 
cently arrived  from  Germany,  present  to  the 
church  a  pair  of  beautiful  candlesticks,  which 
were  ordered  to  be  placed  on  each  side  of  the 
pulpit.  ^He  had  also  collected,  whilst  in  Germany, 
£275  currency  for  the  benefit  of  the  church,  which 
he  oflered  to  pay  over,  but  the  council  requested 
him  to  retain  it  in  his  possession,  and  pay  it  out 
for  the  repairs  and  improvements  of  a  house  re- 
cently purchased  by  the  congregation." 

This  fact,  in  connection  with  the  additional  one, 
that  no  charge  was  to  be  made  to  the  pastor  for 


212  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

house-rent,  and  the  statement  of  Dr.  Muhlenberg, 
indicate  that  the  congregation  possessed  a  par- 
sonage at  that  time,  which  was  rented  out  for 
the  good  of  the  church,  when  not  in  use  by  the 
pastor. 

"In  1769  the  officers  made  a  contract  with  Mr. 
Speisseggir  for  a  new  organ,  but  no  statement  is 
given  as  to  its  cost." 

A  short  time  previous  to  Rev.  Hahnbaum's 
death,  a  certain  Master  of  Arts,  Mr.  Frederick 
Daser,  who  was  yet  very  young,  arrived  in  Char- 
leston from  the  Duchy  of  Wiirtemberg,  without 
credentials,  without  clothes  or  money,  his  trunk 
containing  said  articles,  according  to  his  declara- 
tion, having  been  stolen  from  him  in  Holland.  A 
good-hearted  elder  of  this  congregation  had  com- 
passion on  him,  paid  his  passage-money,  and  pro- 
cured him  respectable  clothing  suitable  to  his  pro- 
fession. 

Pastor  Hahnbaum  having  been  sick  a  long  time 
received  this  Artis  Magister,  with  the  consent  of 
the  vestry,  as  his  vicar.  He  examined  him,  had 
him  ordained,  and  afterwards  also  installed  through 
two  elders,  and  married  him  on  his  sick-bed,  be- 
fore his  decease,  to  one  of  his  o\yn  daughters,  be- 
sides giving  him  the  necessary  books  and  skeletons 
of  sermons. 

After  the  death  of  Re.v.  Hahnbaum,  which  oc- 
curred February  10th,  1770,  the  vestry  gave  Mag- 
ister Daser  a  conditional  call  for  one  year,  with 
the  hope  that  through  "prayer,  study,  and  tempta- 
tion" (oratioue,  meditatione  et  tentatione),  which 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  213 

was  Luther's  celebrated  recipe  for  the  making  of 
a  preacher,  a  theologian  might  yet  be  formed  of 
him;  but  his  young  wife  likewise  conducted  her- 
self in  a  manner  unbecoming  a  pastor's  wife,  be- 
sides being  ignorant  of  housewifery^,  and  destitute 
of  the  true  ornament  of  a  woman — 1  Pet.  3:4; 
and  he  himself  was  light  of  body,  light  in  spirit, 
and  heavy  in  self-will  and  inordinate  passions  and 
affections;  consequent!}^,  the  fruits  of  such  dispo- 
sitions soon  manifested  themselves.  The  year 
having  now  expired,  and  having  no  other  alterna- 
tive, the  congregation  contracted  with  him  to  serve 
them  three  years  longer. 

The  following  account  of  this  transaction,  as 
gathered  from  the  church  records  of  this  congre- 
gation by  Mr.  Jacob  F.  Schirmer,  does  not  exactly 
agree  with  what  is  related  above  by  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg, but  may,  therefore,  because  taken  from  the 
records  of  the  church,  be  all  the  more  correct: 

"  The  congregation  appointed  a  committee  to 
wait  upon  the  pastor,  and  inquire  upon  what  terms 
and  what  length  of  time  he  would  be  willing  to 
serve  them,  and  whether  he  would^  promise  to  be 
faithful,  industrious,  and  conscientious  in  his  walk 
and  conversation,  and  to  serve  the  flock  as  a  faith- 
ful shepherd.  Such  questions,  propounded  to  Eev. 
Daser  after  he  had  labored  one  year  as  pastor  of 
that  church,  do  not  argue  much  in  his  favor,  and 
yet  the  committee  at  the  next  meeting  reported 
that  the  congregation  appear  to  be  perfectly  satis- 
fied with  Pastor  Daser,  and  that  he  on  his  part 
promises  to  discharge  his  duties  faithfully,  but  he 


214  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

thought  it  unbecoming  to  enter  into  a  regular 
contract  between  pastor  and  people,  but  was  will- 
ing to  serve  them  for  three  years  at  a  quarterly 
payment  of  £500  currency.  This  was  submitted 
to  the  congregation,  and  they  finally  agreed  to 
engage  Mr.  Daser  for  two  years,  and  that  he  re- 
ceive £420  currency  quarterly,  still  reserving  to 
themselves  the  right,  that  if  his  conduct  did  not 
meet  with  their  approbation,  they  were  at  liberty 
to  discharge  him,  by  giving  him  three  months' 
notice.  This  arrangement  was  first  objected  to 
b}^  the  minister,  but  he  finally  agreed  to  it,  and 
signed  the  agreement.  He  now  requested  his 
people  to  present  him  with  a  gown,  which  was 
accordingly  ordered,  and  was  made  by  Mr.  Tim- 
rod. 

*'In  1773  Pastor  Daser  lodged  a  complaint 
against  one  of  the  members  for  his  improper 
conduct  towards  him,  and  hopes  he  would  treat 
him  with  more  kindness,  and  not  judge  him  so 
severely." 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  states  further:  "However,  as 
Rev.  Daser  had  always  discharged  the  duties  of 
his  oflice  as  a  secondary  business,  and  both  he  and 
his  wife  had  digressed  in  several  things,  had  fre- 
quented too  much  company,  and  became  deeply 
involved  in  debt,  &c.,  the  vestry  discharged  him 
before  the  end  of  the  third  year.  He  had,  how- 
ever, a  party  of  his  own  kind,  who  were  offended 
at  the  vestr}-  on  account  of  his  discharge,  and  who 
regarded  his  extravagance  either  as  trifling  or 
praiseworthy;  yet  they  were  far  too  weak  to  raise 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  215 

his  salary  without  the  aid  of  the  elders  and  other 
well-disposed  members."  The  vestry  then  wrote 
to  the  Reverend  Consistorium  of  the  Electorate 
of  Hanover,  supplicating  that  ecclesiastical  body 
for  a  regular  minister,  but  were  informed  that 
they  could  not  be  supplied  from  that  source.  Af- 
terwards the  elders  and  wardens  addressed  Dr. 
Muhlenberg,  and  besought  him  to  send  them  an 
educated  and  exemplary  pastor  of  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Ministerium.  The  adherents  of  Mr.  Daser 
also  wrote  to  him  anonymously  at  the  same  time, 
accusing  the  vestry,  stating  that  Parson  Daser  had 
been  a  good  preacher  for  them,  and  that  the  vestry 
had  discharged  him  without  the  will  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  congregation,  without  cause  and  from 
motives  of  personal  hatred,  &c. 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  answered  both  communications, 
informing  them  that,  "God  willing,  he  would  make 
a  journey  to  Ebenezer,  in  Georgia,  in  the  fall,  and 
would  then  also  come  to  Charleston  on  his  way 
to  Georgia,  and  there  personally  investigate  their 
affairs." 

Accordingly  Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  set  sail  for 
Charleston,  South  Carolina,  August  27th,  1774, 
and  arrived  September  8th  following.  He  was 
received  and  welcomed  with  the  utmost  kindness 
by  the  principal  German  families,  as  well  as  by 
many  English  inhabitants,  and  whilst  there  he  ex- 
erted himself,  as  far  as  he  could,  to  heal  the  un- 
happy division  then  existing  in  the  German  Lu- 
theran congregation,  caused  by  the  irregularities 
of  Pastor  Daser,  in  which,  as  he  was  well  adapted 


216  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

for  this  undertaking,  and  was  frequently  and  justly 
entitled  the  peacemaker,  lie  was  quite  successful. 
.  In  the  mean  time,  which  elapsed  between  Dr. 
Muhlenberg's  answer  to  both  parties  in  the  con- 
gregation and  his  arrival  in  Charleston,  Rev.  Daser 
had  procured  a  recommendation  from  the  Lord 
Lieutenant-Governor  of  South  Carolina,  residing 
in  Charleston,  and  also  from  the  resident  English 
Episcopal  clergymen,  to  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Lon- 
don for  Episcopal  ordination,  and  afterwards  to 
receive  "  a  competent  living  in  some  country  con- 
gregation, and  thus  become  a  dead  weight  in  the 
English  Established  Church."  However,  before 
he  had  completed  his  arrangements  for  his  con- 
templated visit  to  London,  Eev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg 
arrived  in  Charleston ;  and  then  he  hoped  and  ex- 
pected, through  the  venerable  Doctor's  interces- 
sion, to  be  called  by  the  vestry  of  St.  John's  Lu- 
theran Church  for  life,  and  to  receive  an  annual 
salary  of  £100  sterling. 

But  as  soon  as  the  Doctor  had  learned  all  the 
circumstances  of  Daser's  own  and  his  wife's  con- 
duct "  from  sensible  and  impartial  persons,"  he 
could  not  conscientiously  interest  himself  in  Rev. 
Daser's  behalf;  "  for,"  says  the  Doctor,  "  when  a 
minister  makes  himself  familiar  with  drunkards, 
flourishes  with  his  sword  at  night  along  the  streets, 
throws  stones  at  windows,  &c.,  and  his  wife  fre- 
quents the  theatre  at  night,  leads  in  the  dance  at 
weddings,  &c.,  we  can  easilj^  imagine  what  impres- 
sions this  must  make  upon  well-meaning  mem- 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  217 

bers !  0  Lord  of  Heaven,  do  Thou  have  mercy 
upon  such  a  state  of  things !" 

For  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  his  design,  Rev. 
Daser  sailed  in  a  vessel  from  Charleston  to  Lon- 
don, in  order  to  obtain  Episcopal  ordination;  many 
well-disposed  persons  subscribed  liberally  to  the 
support  of  his  wife  and  two  small  children  during 
his  absence ;  but  a  violent  storm  arose  whilst  the 
vessel  was  out  at  sea,  and  so  injured  her  that  she 
w^as  obliged  to  return  to  Charleston.  This  provi- 
dential occurrence  had  the  effect  of  changing  Rev. 
Daser's  purpose,  and  may  have  induced  him  to 
become  a  wiser  and  better  man,  for  his  after-life 
appears  to  have  been  considerably  changed. 

It  is  also  recorded  of  him,  that  during  his  ab- 
sence at  sea,  the  members  of  St.  John's  Church 
discovered  that  he  had  cut  thirty-two  leaves  out  of 
their  church-record  book,  for  which  they  took 
him  to  task  immediately  after  his  return,  and  he 
acknowledged  that  he  had  cut  out  and  burned 
two  leaves  only.  This  accounts  for  the  mutilation 
in  that  church-book  as  mentioned  by  Mr.  Schirmer 
hi  his  "Reminiscences  of  the  Past." 

Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  had  no  small  difficult}-  in 
healing  the  dissensions  of  the  congregation.  He 
listened  to  all  parties  and  heard  their  tale  of 
grievances  patiently,  preached  to  them  faithfully 
in  the  church  every  Sunday  during  his  stay  among 
them,  called  congregational  meetings,  and  on  the 
fourth  Sunday  of  his  visit  administered  the  com- 
munion, and  yet  apparentl}^  with  very  little  effect; 
for  some  still  wanted  Rev.  Daser  to  be  recalled, 

19 


218  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

others  desired  the  Rev.  Mr.  Martin,  who  now 
labored  in  the  Saluda  Fork,  to  return  and  be  their 
pastor;  whilst  Dr.  Muhlenberg,  with  many  others, 
believed  it  to  be  the  best  policy  to  call  an  entire 
stranger  from  Germany  or  elsewhere,  who  could 
exert  much  more  influence,  and  heal  all  divisions, 
than  one  who  was  already  well  known  to  the  con- 
gregation. Acting  upon  this  belief,  and  as  a  last 
resort,  the  Doctor  drew  up  a  petition  to  be  sent  to 
the  "  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge," 
requesting  it  to  send  a  pastor  to  this  congregation, 
which  reads  as  follows : 

"  We,  the  subscribers,  for  the  time  being,  war- 
dens, vestr^anen,  and  contributing  members  of  the 
German  Lutheran  St.  John's  Church  and  congre- 
gation in  and  about  Charleston,  in  South  Carolina, 
His  Brittanick  Majesty  King  George  Ill's  loyal 
and  dutiful  subjects,  do  send  greeting  to  the  most 
worthy  and  reverend  fathers  in  God,  Frederick 
Ziegenhagen,  His  Majesty's  Chaplain  in  the  Ger- 
man Chapel  at  St.  James,  Anastasius  Freyling- 
hausen,  Louis  Schultz,  D.D.,  and. to  the  Directors 
of  the  East  and  West  India  Missions  at  Halle, 
Gustavus  Burgmann  of  the  Savoy,  Rector,  and 
William  Pasche,  Assistant  in  His  Majesty's  Ger- 
man Chapel,  all  worthy  members  of  the  venerable 
Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge;  and 
do  humbly  request  that,"  &c.,  &c.  (here  follows  a 
description  of  the  kind  of  minister  that  Avas  de- 
sired, adding  also  this  important  clause),  "  who  is 
able  and  willing  to  propagate  the  Gospel  accord- 
ing to  the  foundations  of  the  holy  Apostles  and 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  219 

Prophets,  whereof  Christ  Jesus  is  the  Corner- 
stone, and  to  administer  the  holy  sacraments, 
agreeably  to  the  articles  of  our  unaltered  Augus- 
tan (Augsburg)  Confession."  (Then  follow  an 
enumeration  of  the  other  pastoral  duties,  salary 
promised,  use  of  the  parsonage  rent  free,  precau- 
tionary promises  against  further  divisions  in  the 
congregation,  &c.,  concluding  the  whole  with): 
"  In  witness  whereof,  we  have  hereunto  inter- 
changeably set  our  hands  and  seals  at  Charleston, 
in  South  Carolina,  this  25th  day  of  October,  in 
the  sixteenth  year  of  His  Majesty's  reign,  Anno 
Domini  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  seventy- 
four."  Evangelical  Eeview,  vol.  i,  pp.  401  and 
402. 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  had  the  satisfaction  to  see  this 
petition  signed  by  nearly  all  the  members  of  the 
congregation.  It  was  carried  around  to  each  one 
privately  by  several  of  the  vestrymen,  who  by 
their  personal  influence,  and  the  great  desire  for 
peace  at  last,  enabled  them  thus  to  heal  up  the 
unhappy  divisions  then  existing  in  the  congrega- 
tion. 

As  a  matter  of  course,  this  petition  terminated 
all  hopes  of  Rev.  F.  Daser's  ministrations  in  this 
congregation  for  that  time;  how  he  returned  and 
served  this  people  again,  and  under  what  circum- 
stances, will  also  be  made  apparent. 

The  letter  containing  the  petition  of  the  congre- 
gation to  the  "  reverend  Fathers"  in  Europe  for  a 
pastor  was  sent  to  Rev.  William  Pasche  in  Lon- 
don; a  merchant  in  Charleston,  Mr.  Mey,  took  it 


220  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

in  charge,  and  forwarded  it  to  Europe  bj  the  first 
opportullit3^ 

The  vestry  also  sent  another  letter  to  the  Rev. 
J.  I^.  Martin,  beseeching  him  to  serve  the  congre- 
gation once  more  until  the  new  pastor  would 
arrive,  provided  they  should  be  successful  in  ob- 
taining one  from  the  Society  in  Europe.  Rev. 
Martin  consented  to  their  request,  as  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg states:  "To-day  an  elder  of  the  congregation 
showed  me  an  answer  from  Rev.  Mr.  Martin,  in 
which  he  states,  that  in  compliance  with  the  desire 
of  the  vestry,  he  will  serve  the  Evangelical  Con- 
gregation of  this  place  one  and  a  half  years,  and, 
Deo  volente,  will  take  charge  the  first  Sunday  in 
Advent.  Thus,  it  appears,  this  object  is  gained, 
that  the  congregation  will  be  supplied  in  the 
meanwhile,  until  it  can  be  seen  what  will  result 
from  the  critical  strife  between  the  Colonies  and 
their  angry  mother,  and  whether  the  intended  call 
to  our  reverend  Fathers  for  an  ordained  minister 
will  meet  with  the  desired  efi'ect." 

Under  date  of  October  15,  Dr.  Muhlenberg 
states :  "  To-day  I  sent  for  the  church  records  of 
this  congregation,  and  recorded  the  actus  ministe- 
riales  that  occurred  during  my  five  weeks'  sojourn 
in  this  place.'' 

On  the  26th  of  October,  Dr.  Muhlenberg  took 
afifectionate  leave  of  this  people,  after  having  satis- 
factorily settled  all  the  difficulties  in  the  congrega- 
tion. Many  of  his  cherished  friends  attended  him 
to  the  vessel  which  was  to  take  him,  together  with 
his  wife  and  daughter,  who  accompanied  him,  to 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  221 

Savannah.  The  good  that  he  had  effected  in 
Charleston  was  long  rememhered  by  man}^  grate- 
ful hearts. 

The  church  council  agreed  to  pay  Eev.  J.  E". 
Martin  half  of  his  travelling  expenses  to  Charles- 
ton, and  give  him  a  lixed  salary  of  ^130  quarterly, 
which  was  accepted,  and  he  returned  once  more 
to  them  as  their  pastor  early  in  December,  1774, 
and  labored  faithfully  among  his  people,  beloved 
by  all,  and  in  harmony  with  the  various  opposing 
parties  that  had  previously  existed.  About  this 
time  the  German  Friendly  Society  presented  the 
church  with  a  clock. 

The  time  of  engagement  with  Rev.  Martin  as 
pastor  among  the  Lutherans  in  Charleston  was 
now  drawing  to  a  close,  and  no  hope  as  yet  pre- 
sented itself  of  obtaining  a  pastor  from  the  So- 
ciet}^  for  the  Promotion  of  Christian  Knowledge. 
Troubles  of  a  more  serious  nature  were  gathering 
thick  and  fast.  The  high  price  of  the  necessaries 
of  life,  the  struggles  of  the  American  Revolution 
w4iich  had  caused  it,  the  irregularity  and  final  ces- 
sation of  all  commercial  intercourse  with  Europe, 
made  it  now  a  matter  of  impossibility  to  obtain 
ministerial  help  from  abroad;  all  of  which  induced 
the  congregation  in  1776  to  enter  into  a  new  agree- 
ment with  Rev.  Martin,  engaging  him  for  two 
years  longer,  inasmuch  also  as  they  were  well 
pleased  with  him  as  their  pastor. 

From  an  anniversary  sermon,  delivered  by  Rev, 
John  Bachman,  D.D.,  a  glowing  picture  of  the 
state  of  this  church  at  that  time  is  furnished  us. 


222  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

The  Doctor  informs  us,  that  ^'during  the  stormy 
season  of  the  Revolution,  the  Germans  of  this  cit}^ 
had  been  the  strenuous  advocates  and  defenders 
of  the  rights  of  their  adopted  country.  The  Ger- 
man Fusilier  Company  was  formed  out  of  the 
original  members  of  this  congregation.  They  par- 
ticipated in  the  dangers  and  sufterings  of  the 
Revolution,  and  their  captain  fell  at  the  siege  of 
Savannah.  Their  pastor,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Martin, 
many  of  whose  descendants  are  still  living  among 
us,  on  his  refusal  to  pray  for  the  king,  was  driven 
from  his  church  and  his  property  was  confiscated. 
He  was  for  a  time  placed  under  an  arrest,  and 
was  afterwards  compelled  to  leave  the  city,  to 
which  he  did  not  return  until  the  close  of  the  war. 
In  the  meantime,  the  church  was  partially  suppHed 
by  two  other  ministers,  who  were  less  exception- 
able to  our  foreign  rulers." 

The  two  ministers,  alluded  toby  Dr.  Bachman, 
were  the  Rev.  Christian  Streitt,  and  Rev.  Fred- 
erick Daser;  however,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed 
that  the  former  was  a  Tory  in  principle.  In  the 
memoir  of  Rev.  Mr.  Streitt,  published  in  the 
Evangelical  Review,  vol.  ix,  p.  379,  we  are  in- 
formed, that  "during  our  Revolutionary  struggle, 
Rev.  Streitt  was  appointed  Chaplain  in  the  army, 
and  was,  for  a  season,  in  the  service  of  the  Third 
Virginia  regiment.  Afterwards  he  was  settled  as 
pastor  of  a  congregation  in  Charleston,  South 
Carolina.  During  the  sacking  of  the  city  in  1780, 
he  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  British,  and  retained 
as  such  until  exchanged.  The  cause  of  his  capture 
was,  undoubtedly,  his  unwavering  patriotism  and 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  223 

firm  attachment  to  the  principles  of  the  American 
Revolution.  It  is  a  source  of  congratulation  to 
the  Lutheran  Church,  that  those  who  ministered 
at  her  altars  during  that  memorable  and  trying 
period,  with  scarcely  an  exception,  were  the  de- 
voted friends  of  their  countr3^" 

The  two  pastors  appear  to  have  labored  in 
friendly  connection  with  each  other,  as  the  signa- 
tures of  both  are  occasionally  affixed  to  the  records 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  vestry,  whilst  at  other 
times  the  signature  of  only  one  of  them  appears. 
This  may  have  been  permitted  by  Pastor  Streitt 
and  the  vestry,  from  motives  of  respect  to  Rev. 
Daser,  and  for  the  purpose  of  conciliating  him 
and  his  party. 

Rev.  Streitt  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his 
office  in  1778.  During  the  month  of  April  of 
that  year  he  preached  several  trial  sermons,  when 
he,  soon  afterwards,  became  the  pastor.  He  was 
engaged  to  serve  three  years  in  this  charge,  but 
was  taken  away  before  the  expiratioii  of  that  term 
as  a  prisoner  of  war  by  the  British.  It  was  Rev. 
Mr.  Streitt,  says  Ramsay, vol.  ii,  p.  23,  who  "first 
introduced  divine  service  in  the  Eno-lish  lano^uao-e, 
SO  as  to  have  one  service  in  English  every  second 
or  third  Sunday."  In  July,  1782,  he  took  charge 
of  l!^evv  Hanover  Church,  in  Pennsylvania,  and 
in  1785  he  commenced  his  labors  in  Winchester, 
Virginia,  where  he  remained  to  the  close  of  his 
life. 

An  enormous  rate  of  charges  for  ministerial 
duties  appears  to  have  been  established  by  the 
vestry  of  St.  John's  Lutheran  Church,  in  Charles- 


224  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ton,  in  1779,  whilst  the  Rev.  Mr.  Streitt  was  the 
pastor.  This  was  done  on  account  of  the  very 
high  price  of  provisions  consequent  upon  the  war, 
and  was  to  remain  in  force  only  so  long  as  such  a 
state  of  things  existed.  They  were  as  follows: 
For  attending  a  funeral,  £10;  for  preaching  a 
funeral  sermon,  £30;  and  £50  for  a  marriage  fee; 
of  course,  all  in  Carolina  currency. 

In  the  year  1781,  Rev.  F.  Daser  seems  to  have 
had  sole  charo-e  of  this  church  once  more.  This 
was  the  period  of  British  rule  in  Charleston,  and 
it  is  probable  that  he  was  the  person  who  was 
"less  exceptionable  to  our  foreign  rulers,"  as 
stated  by  Rev.  Dr.  Bachman.  At  all  events  he 
continued  in  office  during  the  whole  of  that  period, 
and  resigned  his  charge  of  St.  John's  Church  some 
time  after  peace  was  declared,  viz.,  in  July,  1786, 
when  he  removed  to  Orangeburg  District,  South 
Carolina. 

Section  7.  The  Lutheran  Church  in  Amelia  Town- 
ship^ Orangeburg  District  (Count}/),  South 
Carolina. 

In  addition  to  the  settlement  of  Germans  and 
Swiss  in  and  around  Orangeburg  village,  which 
received  the  name  of  Orangeburg  Township,  so 
great  was  the  influx  of  German  emigrants  there, 
that  another  township  was  soon  laid  out,  north- 
east of  Orangeburg,  and  adjoining  it,  which  was 
named  Amelia  Township,  where  a  Lutheran  con- 
gregation was  organized  and  a  house  of  worship 
erected,  that  received  the  name  St.  Matthew's 
Church,  and  which   has  survived  all  the  vicissi- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  225 

tudes  and  encroachments  of  more  than  a  century 
of  time. 

When  it  was  organized  and  who  was  instru- 
mental in  effecting  its  organization  can  now  be 
only  a  matter  of  conjecture.  From  the  church- 
record  book,  kept  by  Rev.  John  Geissendanner, 
and  still  preserved  by  his  descendants,  we  learn 
that  he  often  visited  the  German  settlers  in  Amelia 
Township,  and  performed  ministerial  acts  among 
them;  it  is  not  improbable  that  he  also  occasion- 
ally preached  there,  but  nothing  is  stated  con- 
cerning a  church-ediUce  and  congregation  having 
existed  in  Amelia  Township  during  the  first  years 
of  his  ministry,  and  there  is  strong  reason  to  be- 
lieve that  such  was  not  the  case,  inasmuch  as  he, 
at  that  time,  connected  the  records  of  baptisms, 
marriages,  &c.,  of  these  people  with  those  of  the 
Orangeburg  congregation.  [^Nevertheless,  as  he 
must  have  labored  there  some  nine  years  before 
any  other  German  minister  arrived,  he  may  have 
been  instrumental  in  oro;anizinor  St.  Matthew's 
Lutheran  Church. 

In  the  year  1747,  the  Rev.  Joachim  Ziibly,  D.D., 
removed  from  Frederica  on  St.  Simon's  Island,  in 
Georgia,  and  labored  in  this  community.  He  was 
a  German  Reformed  minister,  and  is  spoken  of  in 
the  highest  terms  in  Dr.  Muhlenberg's  journal,  as 
follows:  "  Oct.  28.  According  to  invitation,  I  and 
my  family  dined  with  Rev.  Dr.  Ziibly,  and  I  spent 
the  afternoon  very  pleasantly  with  him  in  his 
library  and  study.  He  is  an  experienced,  influen- 
tial, learned,  prudent,  and  very  industrious  man, 
of  a  sanguine  temperament.     He  has  a  larger  col- 


226  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

lection  of  fine  books  than  any  I  have  seen  in 
America.  The  external  appearance  of  his  library 
and  study  is  not  surpassed  by  the  most  superior 
in  Germany.  All  the  books  appear  like  trees  that 
lose  their  fruit  in  autumn,  so  that  innumerable 
printed  leaves,  whole  and  half  tracts,  manuscripts, 
&c.,  are  scattered  on  the  floor.  It  reminded  me 
of  the  polyhistorian  Markosius,  and  our  venerable 
Bogatzky,  whose  studies  are  said  to  appear  in 
such  good  order,  that  the  most  noted  housewife 
dare  not  venture  to  arrange  anything  in  them,  lest 
she  should  put  them  in  disorder.  January  9th. 
Towards  evening  Rev.  Dr.  Zlibly  arrived  here, 
who  communicated  to  us  in  the  evening  his  man- 
uscript Latin  dissertation,  'Pro  gradu  doctoris,' 
which  will  shortly  be  printed.  January  10th. 
Towards  evening  Rev.  Dr.  Zlibly  returned  from 
Purysburg,  where  he  had  preached  in  English, 
and  refreshed  us  during  the  evening  with  Chris- 
tian conversation." 

During  the  ministrations  of  Dr.  Zlibly  in  Amelia 
Township,  he  doubtless  was  instrumental  in  eftect- 
ing  the  organization  of  "The  German  Calvinistic 
Church  of  St.  John  on  the  Fourhole,"  which  was 
incorporated  by  that  name  by  the  State  Legisla- 
ture in  1788,  but  is  now  no  longer  in  existence, 
and  its  members  and  their  descendants  have  long 
since  been  mostly  absorbed  by  the  Lutheran 
churches  in  the  vicinity.  Fourhole  is  the  name  of 
a  creek  in  Amelia  Township,  which  with  the  fact 
that  this  (St.  John's)  Church  is  clustered  together 
with  the  two  Lutheran  churches  located  in 
Orangeburg   District  (County),   in    one   and   the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  227 

same  bill  of  incorporation,  locates  that  chiircb  in 
Amelia  Township,  or  immediately  below  it,  in 
Orangeburg  County,  which  encompasses  all  that 
territory. 

Rev.  Dr.  Ziibly  afterwards  removed  to  Savan- 
nah, Georgia;  where  Dr.  Muhlenberg  met  him 
on  his  way  to  Ebenezer. 

In  the  year  1760,  the  Rev.  John  George  Fried- 
erichs,  the  founder  of  the  first  Lutheran  church  in 
Charleston,  commenced  to  labor  in  Amelia  Town- 
sbip,  and  remained  in  this  pastorate  for  a  long 
time,  being  still  at  that  post  of  duty  on  October 
15th,  1774,  wben  Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  gives  the 
following  account  of  him  : 

"I  received  an  agreeable  letter  from  Rev.  John 
George  Friederichs,  Lutheran  minister  in  Amelia 
Township,  one  hundred  miles  in  the  country, 
dated  October  15th,  1774,  in  which  he  states,  that 
be  learned  of  my  arrival  in  Charleston,  first  from 
Rev.  Hochheimer,  who  traveled  through  here,  and 
was  assured  of  it  by  letter  of  September  20th  ult., 
which  afi:brded  him  very  great  pleasure,  and  in- 
duced him  to  prepare  for  a  journey  to  Charleston, 
but  that  he  was  prevented  by  sickness  and  the 
fear  of  not  meeting  me  here,  especially  as  I  had 
intimated  in  my  letter  that  I  intended,  God  will- 
ing, to  continue  my  journey  to  Georgia  in  October. 
But  that  he  would  request  my  host,  Mr.  Kimmel, 
to  inform  him  when  I  returned  to  Charleston,  and 
then,  if  we  lived,  visit  me,  &c.,  &c.  The  person 
bringing  the  letter  returning  to-morrow,  I  an- 
swered his  letter  and  sought  to  encourage  him  to 
fight  the  good  fight,  to  keep  the  faith,  and  to  finish 


228  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  course,  &c.  He  sustains  a  good  character  for 
sound  doctrine  and  exemplar}-  conduct  among  in- 
formed persons;  he  has  no  family,  and  is  satisfied 
with  the  necessaries  of  life. 

"A  laborer,  standing  thus  alone  in  the  wilderness 
among  rude  people,  must  be  much  encouraged 
when  he  receives  unexpectedly  a  few  lines  of  com- 
fort from  a  fellow-suffering  and  tempted  cross- 
bearer,  as  is  manifest  from  his  answer  to  my  first 
letter.     It  is  written,  *  Woe  to  him  that  is  alone.' " 

How  long  afterwards  Rev.  Friederichs  labored 
in  this  charge  cannot  be  ascertained,  but  it  is  pre- 
sumed that  he  remained  there  in  the  faithful  dis- 
charge of  his  duty  to  the  close  of  his  life.  Per- 
haps he  did  not  live  long  after  Dr.  M.'s  visit  to 
Charleston,  for  nothing  is  further  recorded  of 
him,  and  his  name  does  not  appear  among  the  list 
of  ministers  in  South  Carolina,  who  formed  the 
Corpus  Evangelicum  in  1787;  and  in  1786  an- 
other minister  had  taken  charge  of  the  pastorate 
in  Amelia  Township. 

It  was  during  the  ministry  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Fried- 
erichs in  this  community,  that  a  colony  of  Ger- 
mans came  from  Maine  and  settled  in  Orangeburg 
District,  accompanied  by  their  pastor,  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Cilley  or  Silly;  but,  inasmuch  as  the  records 
of  this  colonization  of  Germans  do  not  harmonize 
with  each  other,  they  are  inserted  here  without 
comment,  leaving  the  reader  to  form  his  own  con- 
clusions. 

J.  C.  Hope,  Esq.,  speaking  of  the  Lutheran  set- 
tlers in  Orangeburg  District,  says:  "In  1763  a 
colony  of  German  Lutherans  came  from  Maine, 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  229 

accompanying  their  pastor  Silly,  and  joined  their 
brethren  in  South  Carolina ;  but  in  time  the  most 
of  these  returned." 

Rev.  Dr.  Hazelius'  statement  is:  '^Rev.  Mr. 
Cilley  arrived  in  South  Carolina  with  a  colony  of 
German  emigrants  from  Maine,  in  the  jesiv  1773. 
But  of  his  labors  and  success  no  accounts  can  be 
found." 

The  statement  in  "The  Javelin,"  pp.  170  and 
171,  is  as  follows:  "The  disappointment  and  suf- 
fering which  they  were  presently  made  to  endure 
in  consequence  of  the  deceptions  practiced  upon 
them,  were  trying  in  the  extreme.  And  to  all 
their  other  troubles,  the  Indians  fell  upon  them 
also,  and  destroyed  many  lives  and  much  sub- 
stance. Ill-treated,  robbed,  wronged  and  disap- 
pointed, many  of  them,  under  the  guidance  of  a 
Moravian  clergyman,  left  Muscungus  (Maine),  and 
emigrated  to  Carolina,  in  1773." 

Section  8.  The  Lutheran  Chujxhes  in  Saxe-Gotha 
Township^  Lexington  District  (County)^  South 
Carolina. 

Saxe-Gotha  Township  having  been  settled  as 
early  as  1737,  principally  by  Germans  and  Swiss, 
who  continued  to  arrive  there  for  several  years 
following,  soon  became  well  populated  by  these 
colonists,  considering  the  difficulties  of  emigration 
and  state  of  the  country  at  that  time.  The  Ger- 
man Reformed  settlers,  as  already  stated,  were 
supplied  with  a  pastor,  who  labored  among  them 
from  the  year  1739  to  the  close  of  his  life,  a  period 
of  more  than  fifty  years,  for  he  was  still  living  in 


230  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

1789.  The  Lutherans  were  not  so  fortunate  as 
their  German  Reformed  brethren,  in  being*  thus 
earlj  supplied  with  the  regular  means  of  grace. 
At  the  time  of  Dr.  Muhlenberg's  visit  to  Charles- 
ton, in  1774,  there  were  two  Lutheran  ministers 
laboring  in  Saxe-Gotha,  the  Rev.  Lewis  Hoch- 
heimer,  at  Sandy  Run,  and  the  Rev.  J.  ]N".  Martin, 
in  the  Saluda  Fork,  and  it  is  safely  presumed  that 
they  were  the  first  Lutheran  ministers  who  labored 
in  that  township ;  at  all  events,  it  is  an  ascertained 
fact,  recorded  in  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  that  no 
Lutheran  minister  had  labored  there  previous  to 
the  year  1750,  when  a  petition  was  sent  to  the  pas- 
tors of  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  signed  by  two  hundred 
and  eighty  Lutherans,  beseeching  those  pastors 
to  send  them  a  minister;  yet  their  petition  was 
not  regarded,  and  they  were  left  without  a  pastor 
of  their  own  faith.  How  long  they  continued  in 
this  spiritually  destitute  condition  is  not  known, 
but  it  is  more  than  probable,  judging  from  the 
condition  of  the  colony  and  of  the  Church  at  the 
time  of  the  criminal  conduct  of  the  Weberites,  in 
1760,  that  the  Lutherans  of  Saxe-Gotha  were  then 
still  destitute  of  the  means  of  grace.  Seven  years 
later  Rev.  Martin  removed  from  Charleston  and 
commenced  his  labors  in  the  Saluda  Fork,  but  no 
records  inform  us  at  what  time  Rev.  Hochheiraer 
commenced  his  ministry  in  the  Sandy  Run  Church. 
The  members  of  the  Lutheran  Church  of  that 
portion  of  Saxe-Gotha  bordering  on  the  Congaree 
River,  known  better  as  the  Sandy  Run  settlement, 
although  privileged  to  hear  the  Gospel  in  their  na- 
tive language  from  the  lips  of  the  German  Re- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  231 

formed  minister,  Eev.  Christian  Theus,  still  felt  it 
their  duty  to  build  a  church  for  themselves,  where 
they  could  worship  God  according  to  the  princi- 
ples of  their  own  faith  ;  but  at  what  time  they  took 
the  proper  steps  to  secure  this  object,  although  so 
much  discouraged  by  Rev.  Bolzius,  is  not  kuown. 
]S"evertheless,  as  the  Urlsperger  Reports,  which 
gives  us  the  Church  news  generally,  does  not 
mention  this  fact  up  to  the  year  1760  (the  latest 
date  of  the  Ebenezer  pastors'  diary),  and  as  the 
Cherokee  War  would  naturally  interfere  with  all 
ecclesiastical  enterprises,  it  can  be  safely  inferred, 
that  the  building  of  the  Lutheran  church  at  Sandy 
Run,  probably  the  earliest  erected  Lutheran 
Church  in  Saxe-Gotha,  was  not  commenced  before 
the  year  1765. 

limine  years  later  w^e  have  a  brief  record  from 
Dr.  Muhlenberg's  journal,  as  follows:  "A  visit 
from  Rev.  Lewis  Hochheimer,  120  miles  from 
here,  at  Sandy  Run,  who  related  to  me  the  events 
of  his  life,  and  offered  to  assist  me  in  preaching 
next  Sunday."  "  Sunday,  September  18th.  In 
the  afternoon  I  went  again  to  church  and  heard 
Rev.  Hochheimer  preach  from  Psalm  50  :  21 : 
'  These  things  hast  thou  done  and  I  kept  silence,' 
quite  edifying  and  systematic."  "  Monday,  Sep- 
tember 19th.  Rev.  Hochheimer  took  leave,  and 
promised  to  give  me  a  correct  description  of  some 
Lutheran  congregations  in  this  neighborhood." 
These  records  indicate  that  a  Lutheran  church 
existed  at  Sandy  Run  at  that  time,  and  that  the 
congregation  had  a  pastor,  the  Rev.  Lewis  Hoch- 
heimer. 


232  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

The  early  settlers  along  the  Congaree  River  se- 
lected their  lands  and  erected  their  dwellin'gs  very 
near  the  river  banks,  where  they  could  obtain  the 
richest  lands,  and  enjoy  all  the  advantages  of 
water  transportation,  fishing,  &c.;  but  where  they, 
on  the  other  hand,  suffered  much  from  the  effects 
of  the  miasma  arising  from  the  river  and  its  nu- 
merous swamps.  !N"evertheless-,  they  clung  to  their 
original  settlements  and  homes  until  disease  had 
made  repeated  inroads  upon  their  robust  consti- 
tutions, and  death  had  greatly  diminished  their 
original  number. 

Wherever  they  had  located  their  houses  and 
homes,  there  likewise  did  they  erect  their  church, 
about  three  miles  from  the  present  situation  of 
Salem  Church,  Sandy  Eun.  The  old  graveyard, 
which  was  not  far  removed  from  the  church,  is 
still  pointed  out  under  the  appellation  of  "  The 
Church  Field;"  and  it  is  stated  that  so  swampy 
or  spongy  is  the  condition  of  the  land,  that  many 
a  coifin  was  lowered  in  its  grave  which  had  become 
half  filled  with  water,  so  that  the  coffin  became 
quite  covered  with  that  element;  and  all  efforts 
to  remedy  the  evil  at  that  place  were  unavailing. 
Yet  it  did  not  occur  to  the  members  of  the  church 
until  a  long  time  afterwards,  to  remove  the  church 
and  graveyard  to  a  more  elevated  situation. 

It  is  to  be  lamented  that  we  know  so  little  of 
Rev.  Hochheimer's  history;  when  he  became 
pastor,  how  long  he  remained  at  Sandy  Run, 
what  the  condition  of  the  church  was  during  the 
Revolution,   who    succeeded    Rev.    Hochheimer, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  233 

when  and  where  he  died  and  was  buried?  all 
these  are  questions  which,  it  is  feared,  will  never 
be  answered,  and  these  answers,  with  other  in- 
teresting facts  connected  with  thera,  may  lie  for- 
ever buried  in  the  oblivion  of  the  past. 

Three  Lutheran  congregations  composed  at  one 
time  the  Saluda  charge :  Zion's  or  Mount  Zion, 
on  Twelve-mile  Creek,  St.  Peter's,  on  Eighteen- 
mile  Creek,  and  Bethel,  on  High  Hill  Creek. 
They  are  alwa3's  spoken  of  in  the  old  records  of 
their  church-books  as  having  formed  one  pastor- 
ate; but  how  far  back  this  arrangement  extended 
cannot  now  be  ascertained.  Salem  Church,  on 
Hollow  Creek,  was  added  to  this  pastorate  at  a 
much  later  date,  probably  some  time  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  present  century. 

In  the  year  1767  the  Rev.  John  Nicholas  Martin 
commenced  to  labor  in  the  Fork  of  the  Saluda  and 
Broad  Rivers,  and  remained  there  until  the  close 
of  the  year  1774,  when  he  was  recalled  to  Charles- 
ton, as  temporary  pastor  of  St.  John's  Lutheran 
Church. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War,  it  is  probable 
that  these  churches  were  vacant,  as  no  Lutheran 
minister  was  residing  then  in  that  part  of  South 
Carolina,  unless,  perhaps,  the  Rev.  Lewis  Hoch- 
heimer  of  Sandy  Run  was  still  living,  and  occa- 
sionally visited  them. 

Section  9.  Other  German  Churches  in  South  Carolina. 

E'ewberry  District  (County)  was  only  partially 
settled  by  Germans,  and  at  a  period  succeeding 

20 


234  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

the  colonization  of  Saxe-Gotha.  A  number  of 
German  churches  existed  there  in  1788,  which 
were  incorporated  at  that  time  by  legishative  en- 
actment, the  names  of  which  were:  "  The  German 
Lutheran  Church  of  Bethlehem,  on  Forest's 
(Fust's)  Ford;"  "The  German  Lutheran  Church 
of  St.  Jacob,  on  Wateree  Creek;"  "The  German 
Protestant  Church  of  Bethany,  on  Green  Creek;" 
and  "The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  St.  Mar- 
tin." The  last  one  mentioned  was  not  organized 
until  after  the  Revolutionarj^  War.  (See  minutes 
of  Corpus  Evangelicum.)  When  these  congre- 
gations were  organized,  and  whether  they  had  a 
pastor  previous  to  the  Revolutionary  period,  is 
not  known,  and  the  probability  is  that  no  minister 
labored  there  at  that  time.  The  first  pastor  min- 
istering there,  of  whom  we  have  any  knowledge, 
was  the  Rev.  Frederick  Joseph  Wallern,  whose 
name  occurs  in  the  first  minutes  of  the  Corpus 
Evangelicum,  in  1787,  but  of  the  date  of  his  arrival 
in  ^N'ewberry  nothing  is  said. 

At  Hard  Labor  Creek,  Abbeville  District 
(County),  there  was  also  a  Lutheran  Church, 
likewise  incorporated  in  1788,  and  named  St. 
George;  but  unless  the  German  settlers  brought 
their  pastor  with  them  from  Germany,  of  which 
nothing  is  said  in  the  records  of  their  colonization, 
it  is  exceedingly  doubtful  whether  they  were  sup- 
plied with  the  means  of  grace  in  the  German 
language  previous  to  the  Revolution,  inasmuch 
as   this    German    settlement   was   onlv   made   in 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  235 

1764,  eleven  years  before  the  breaking  out  of  the 
war. 

Concerning  the  other  settlements  of  Germans 
in  South  Carolina  very  little  can  be  said  during 
this  period,  except  that  which  has  already  been 
stated;  the  one  on  Indian  Field  Swamp,  fifty 
miles  from  Charleston,  had  no  minister  for  some 
time:  they  were  suppHed  with  the  labors  of  a 
German  preacher  in  1774,  whether  Lutheran  or 
Reformed  is  not  stated,  and  even  his  name  is  not 
mentioned;  the  congregation  worshiped  in  a  barn 
belonging  to  Philip  Eisenman. 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  speaks  of  the  condition  of  this 
German  settlement  as  follows:  "My  kind  host  re- 
ceived a  visit  to-day  from  an  intimate  German 
family  of  our  denomination  from  old  Indian 
Swamp,  fifty  miles  in  the  country.  The  man  is 
named  Philip  Eisenman,  has  a  farm  of  his  own, 
but  no  negroes.  He  and  his  wife  cultivate  the 
place  themselves,  in  the  sweat  of  their  brows. 
They  lamented  the  want  of  schools  and  churches 
in  their  neighborhood.  He  has  arranged  his  barn 
for  public  worship,  and  they  have  accepted  as 
preacher  a  young  man  lately  arrived  from  Ger- 
many, and  who  might  answer  for  a  schoolmaster. 
He  writes  his  sermon  through  the  week,  and 
reads  it  on  Sunday,  and  even  reads  with  it  the 
Lord's  prayer  also,  being  yet  young,  and  excusing 
himself  with:  'The  Lord  not  havin.g  gifted  him 
with  a  retentive  memory.'  The  credentials 
brought  by  him  from  Germany  are  —  a  black 
suit   of  clothes.      The    remaining   fragments,    to 


236  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

wit,  band,  &c.,  he  obtained  from  his  countryman, 
Rev.  Daser.  The  two  honest  old  people  com- 
plained that  his  preaching  was  so  meagre  and 
dry,  and  left  the  heart  entirely  unaffected,  and 
they  wanted  something,  therefore,  more  to  awaken 
and  nourish  the  heart." 

It  is  not  known  at  what  time  these  people  suc- 
ceeded in  building  their  church,  but  it  is  not  very 
probable  that  they  accomplished  this  undertaking 
until  after  the  Revolutionary  War,  inasmuch  as 
they  had  no  church  at  the  time  of  Dr.  Muhlen- 
berg's visit,  which  was  only  a  few  months  previous 
to  the  battle  of  Lexington,  Mass.  In  1788  this 
settlement  had  a  church  organization  and  a  house 
of  worship,  incorporated  under  the  name  of  "The 
German  Protestant  Church  of  St.  George,  on  In- 
dian Field  Swamp." 

The  German  Protestant  cono-reo-ation  in  Rich- 
land  District  (County),  near  the  Fairfield  line,  in- 
corporated at  the  same  time  by  the  name  of  "The 
German  Protestant  Church  of  Appii  Forum,  on 
Cedar  Creek,"  was  established  during  this  period. 
Mills,  in  his  Statistics,  p.  722,  says:  "  The  Presby- 
terians were  the  first  religious  society  established 
in  the  (Richland)  District;  they  erected  a  church 
on  the  banks  of  Cedar  Creek  anterior  to  the  Rev- 
olution." Dr.  Howe,  in  his  "History  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  South  Carolina,"  p.  49Jr,  says: 
"It  must  have  been  of  the  German  Reformed 
connection,  and  was  ministered  to  by  Rev.  William 
Dubard,  who  died  of  the  small-pox  in  the  city  of 
Charleston,  near  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  237 

War."  Dr.  Howe  thinks  it  probable  that  this  was 
the  church  which  became  incorporated  by  legis- 
lative enactment,  in  1788,  under  the  name  of  "  The 
German  Protestant  Church  of  Appii  Forum,  on 
Cedar  Creek." 

From  the  memoranda  furnished  Dr.  Howe,  p. 
495,  by  A.  F.  Dubard,  of  Cedar  Creek,  Richland, 
we  learn  that  ''the  traditions  of  the  neighborhood 
speak  of  it  as  having  continued  in  existence  into 
the  next  century,  the  successors  of  Mr.  Dubard 
being  a  clergyman  by  the  name  of  Penegar, 
another  by  the  name  of  Houck,  and  another  by 
the  name  of  Loutz.  The  house  of  worship  w^as 
built  of  logs,  with  an  earth  floor." 

"  Our  informant  speaks  of  Mr.  Loutz  as  a  man 
of  education  and  influence,  who  visited  this  church 
from  iTorth  Carolina,  where  his  residence  was. 
The  communion  seasons  were  to  his  mind,  in  his 
youth,  scenes  of  great  solemnity.  The  commu- 
nicants, approaching  the  table  one  after  another, 
received  the  elements  of  bread  and  wine  in  a 
standing  posture,  and  passed  away  from  the  table 
with  clasped  hands  and  uplifted  eyes." 

"This  church  had  occasional  preaching  by 
others,  but  became  extinct  as  a  Presbyterian 
church  of  the  German  Reformed  order,  and  the 
neighborhood  became  the  seat  of  a  Methodist 
church  and  congregation.  'No  traces  of  this 
church  now  remain." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Houck,  or  Hauck,  is  mentioned 
in  the  minutes  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  iTorth 
Carolina,  A.D.  1812,  p.  7,  as  a  candidate  for  the 


238  THE    LUTHEKAN    CHURCH 

ministry,  who  desired  to  be  ordained  by  that  body 
as  a  minister  of  the  German  Reformed  Church; 
*'but  this  Synod,  after  due  consideration,  con- 
cluded that  they  could  not  consistently  do  any- 
thing in  this  matter." 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  mentions  the  name  of  a  Rev. 
Mr.  Hausile  as  having  preached  twice  in  the  Ger- 
man Lutheran  Church  of  Charleston  "a  few  years 
ago,"  but  whether  he  became  permanently  located 
in  South  Carolina,  and  where  he  labored  is  not 
known. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  all  the  German  min- 
isters who  were  laboring  in  South  Carolina  imme- 
diately preceding  the  Revolutionary  War,  as  far 
as  the  records  in  the  writer's  possession  appear  to 
indicate,  namely:  1.  Rev.  John  IT.  Martin,  pastor 
of  the  Lutheran  church  in  Charleston  ;  2.  Rev.  F. 
Daser,  no  charge,  but  still  residing  in  Charleston; 

3.  Rev. ,  preacher  at  Indian  Field  Swamp;  4. 

Rev.  John  G.  Friederichs,  pastor  of  the  Lutheran 
churches  in  Amelia  Township,  Orangeburg  Dis- 
trict; 5.  Rev.  Lewis  Ilochheimer,  pastor  of  Salem 
Lutheran  Church,  Sandy  Run;  6.  Rev.  Christian 
Theus,  German  Reformed  pastor  in  Saxe-Gotha 
Township;  7.  Rev.  Christian  Streit,  pastor,  for  a 
short  time  during  the  Revolution,  of  the  Lutheran 
church  in  Charleston;  and  although  the  names 
of  Revs.  Ciiley  and  Hausile  are  also  mentiorjed, 
iiotliing  special  is  known  concerning  them ;  8. 
Rev.  William  Dubard,  German  Reformed  pastor 
at  Cedar  Creek  Church,  Richland  District. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  239 

Section  10.  Early  History  of  St.  Johi's  Lutheran 
Churchy  Salisbury^  N.  C. 

It  is  a  cheerful  task  for  the  writer  of  historical 
Darrativo  to  enter  upon  a  field  where  the  earliest 
records  are  abundant,  carefully  made,  and  well 
preserved.  This  is  the  case  in  regard  to  nearly 
ail  the  churches  in  North  Carolina,  whose  original 
church  record-books  and  titles  to  church  property 
are  still  extant,  and  the  reports  of  whose  pastors' 
labors,  like  those  of  the  Pennsylvania  and  Georgia 
ministers,  had  been  sent  to  Germany,  and  were 
published  there. 

St.  John's  Lutheran  Church,  in  Salisbury,  E'orth 
Carolina,  is  first  brought  to  view,  and  was  doubt- 
less the  first  Lutheran  cono-reo^ation  orc^anized  in 
that  Province,  under  the  following  circumstances: 

The  German  citizens  of  that  place  organized 
themselves  into  a  congregation  in  the  days  of  King 
George  III,  and  several  j^ears  before  the  Revolu- 
tion, when  Salisbur}'  was  as  yet  denominated  "a 
township,"  containing  but  few  dwellings  and  a 
small  number  of  inhabitants.  One  of  the  wealthy 
citizens  residing  there,  John  Lewis  Beard,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Lutheran  Church,  was  bereaved  hy 
death  of  a  beloved  daughter.  Whether  the  town- 
ship of  Salisbury  could  then  boast  of  a  regular 
*'  God's  acre  "  is  not  known,  and  the  probability 
is  that  the  mortal  remains  of  departed  ones  were, 
at  that  early  period,  deposited  without  many  re- 
ligious services  in  the  grounds  of  each  landholder 
in  whose  family  or  family  connection  the  death 


240  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

occnrrecl,  a  custom  thus  early  established  fmni  the 
force  of  circumstances,  and  still  reverently  ob- 
served by  many  in  various  parts  of  this  country. 

In  the  same  manner  was  the  body  of  Mr.  Beard's 
daughter  laid  in  the  silent  tomb,  opened  on  her 
father's  town  property,  in  a  lot  containing  nearly 
an  acre,  and  well  selected  for  the  quiet  repose  of 
the  dead.  However,  the  question  then  naturally 
arose.  Shall  that  hallowed  spot,  consecrated  by  the 
repose  of  the  dead  and  the  tears  of  fond  survivors, 
ever  be  disturbed  by  the  march  of  civilization  ? 

To  prevent  such  an  occurrence,  the  forefather  of 
the  Beard  family  in  Salisbury  made  and  executed 
the  following  land  title,  donating  the  grounds  upon 
which  his  daughter  slept  the  quiet  slumber  of  the 

dead,  to  the  German  Lutheran   Church, the 

Church  of  his  choice.  The  original  title  is  still 
preserved,  and  enables  us  to  glance  at  the  peculiar 
customs  of  that  day  in  making  conveyance  of  prop- 
erty, as  well  as  to  learn  the  condition  of  the  Church 
at  that  time. 

Leaving  out  all  useless  and  redundant  matter, 
it  reads  as  follows: 

"This  indenture,  made  September  9,  1768,  be- 
tween John  Lewis  Beard,  of  Salisbury,  in  the 
County  of  Rowan,  and  Province  of  iTorth  Caro- 
lina (butcher),  of  the  one  part,  and  Michael  Brown, 
Michael  More,  Caspar  Guenther,  and  Peter  Reeb, 
Trustees  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  congregation 
in  the  township  of  Salisbury,  of  the  county  and 
province  aforesaid,  of  the  other  part,  Wiinesseth, 
that  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  sura  of  live 
shillings,  &c.,  &c.,  and  for  other  good  causes,  him 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  241 

thereunto  moving,  hath  granted,  &c.,  &c.,  unto  the 
said  trustees  of  the  said  congregation  aforesaid,  and 
to  their  successors  in  office  forever  "  (here  follows 
the  boundaries  and  description  of  the  lot,  contain- 
ing 144  square  poles),  "  unto  the  German  Lutheran 
congregation  in  and  about  Salisbury,  for  to  erect 
and  build  thereon  a  church,  for  the  only  proper 
use  and  behoof  of  the  said  German  Lutheran  con- 
gregation forever"  (here  follows  a  long  descrip- 
tion of  the  manner  the  vacancies  in  the  trustees' 
office  are  to  be  filled,  granting  also  the  use  of  the 
church  to)  "the  High  Church  of  England,  and  to 
the  Reformed  Calvin  ministers  at  such  time  as  the 
said  Lutheran  minister  doth  not  want  to  perform 
divine  service  in  said  church,"  &c.,  &c.  Signed 
and  sealed  by  John  Lewis  Beard,  in  presence  of 
John  Braly,  Andreas  Betz,  and  Valentine  Mauny. 

The  historical  facts  derived  from  this  convey- 
ance and  from  other  sources  are  the  following: 
In  the  year  1768,  Salisbury  had  as  yet  no  house 
of  worship  of  any  kind  within  its  precincts;  min- 
isters of  the  Gospel  may  have  often  or  occasionally 
preached  in  the  private  or  public  houses  of  the 
place,  and  persons  may  have  worshiped  in  other 
churches  in  the  country,  but  no  church  existed  in 
Salisbury  at  that  early  period. 

Although  trustees  had  been  elected  for  the  Lu- 
theran congregation  there,  indicating  that  some 
kind  of  organization  had  been  eftected,  yet  regular 
worship  could  not  have  been  held  among  the  mem- 
bers, as  no  Lutheran  minister  was  then  laboring  in 
all  E"orth  Carolina;  all  these  arrangements  were 

21 


242  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

made  preparatory  to,  and  anticipating  the  regular 
administration  of  the  means  of  grace. 

The  Lutheran  church  in  Salisbury  is  the  oldest 
church  established  in  the  place,  and  from  other 
sources  we  learn  that  the  congregation  had  a  log 
church  edifice  erected  on  the  lot  granted  by  Mr. 
Beard,  in  order  that  they  might  secure  the  land 
to  the  congregation  as  stipulated  by  the  grantor, 
in  which  he  also  rendered  them  every  assistance 
in  his  power.  This  log  church  was  built  soon 
after  the  lot  of  land  was  granted. 

This  deed  seems  to  have  answered  the  threefold 
purpose  of  a  title  to  the  land,  a  charter,  conferring 
upon  the  congregation  certain  rights  and  privi- 
leges, and  a  code  of  by-laws  for  its  government, 
and  thus  has  the  appearance  of  a  very  peculiar 
legal  document. 

The  first  pastor  of  this  church  was  the  Eev. 
Adolph  Nussmann,  a  ripe  and  thorough  scholar, 
and,  what  is  still  better,  a  devoted,  self-sacrificing, 
and  pious  Christian.  He  came  from  Germany  in 
1773  under  circumstances  related  in  Section  13, 
succeeding,  but  did  not  labor  long  in  this  congre- 
gation. He  removed  to  Dutch  Buffalo  Creek 
Church,  now  better  known  as  St.  John's  Lutheran 
Church,  Cabarrus  County.  He  was  su€ceeded  by 
Rev.  Godfrey  Arndt,  who  had  charge  of  Organ 
Church  at  the  same  time,  but  soon  removed  to  the 
west  side  of  the  Catawba  River. 

The  Lutherans  at  Salisbury  were  energetic  par- 
ticipators in  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  arraying 
themselves  on  the  side  of  liberty  and  independence, 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  243 

as  can  be  seen  by  referring  to  Wheeler's  History 
of  I^orth  Carolina,  where  the  names  of  Beard, 
Barringer,  Beeknian,  Mull  and  others,  frequently 
occur  in  connection  with  those  who  labored  and 
fought  for  their  country's  welfare  and  honor. 

During  this  trying  period  the  Lutheran  church 
in  Salisbury  was  vacant  for  a  few  years,  but  was 
visited  by  Revs.  Kussmann  and  Arndt  as  often  as 
the  circumstances  of  the  country  would  admit. 


Section  11.  Early  History  of  Organ  Churchy 
Rowan  County^  N.  C. 

The  proper  name  of  this  congregation  is  "  Zion's 
Church,"  but  there  are  few  persons,  even  among 
its  members,  who  are  acquainted  with  its  true 
name.  The  fact  that  it  was,  until  recently,  the 
only  Lutheran  church  in  North  Carolina  which 
was  possessed  of  such  an  instrument  of  music,  has 
given  it  this  sobriquet,  by  which  it  is  generally 
known  and  so  called  in  all  the  records  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  the  State.  The  old  organ — o, 
relic  of  the  past — is  still  there,  but  its  voice  is  no 
longer  heard  in  the  worship  of  the  congregation; 
like  the  voices  of  its  contemporaries,  who  are  now 
mouldering  in  the  adjoining  graveyard,  its  spirit 
of  music  is  fled,  and  the  external  remains,  encom- 
passing a  number  of  broken  and  disarranged  pipes, 
are  all  that  is  left  to  remind  us  of  a  former  age,  a 
former  congregation,  and  of  a  master  whom  it 
once  honored.     How  forcibly,  under  such  circum- 


244  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

stances,  do  the  follo^Ying  lines  of  Moore's  Melo- 
dies strike  the  mind ! 

"The  harp  that  once,  through  Tara's  halls, 
The  soul  of  music  shed, 
Now  hangs  as  mute  on  Tara's  walls, 
As  if  that  soul  were  fled." 

The  history  of  this  congregation  is  gathered 
from  the  old  German  church-book,  which  is  still 
carefully  preserved,  and  the  historic  records  are 
made  therein  by  one  of  the  first  pastors.  Rev.  C. 
A.  G.  Storch,  from  which  a  correct  idea  may  be 
obtained  of  the  past  transactions  of  the  people 
who  worshiped  there. 

The  first  German  settlers  of  that  portion  of  Rowan 
County,  along  Second  Creek,  came  from  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  were  members  of  the  Lutheran  and 
German  Reformed  Churches,  but  in  numbers  far 
too  few  to  erect  a  church  for  the  sole  use  of  either 
denomination ;  hence  they  concluded  to  build  a 
temporary  house  of  worship  to  be  owned  by  them- 
selves jointly,  and  which  was  called  "  The  Hickory 
Church."  According  to  the  statement  of  the  late 
Rev.  J.  A.  Linn,  this  church  occupied  the  site  on 
w4iich  St.  Peter's  Lutheran  Church  now  stands, 
and  was  built  by  permission  on  the  land  of  Mr. 
Fullen wider,  who,  however,  never  gave  the  two 
congregations  a  title  for  this  spot  of  ground,  as 
the  church  was  considered  a  temporary  building 
only,  to  be  occupied  alternately  by  both  these  de- 
nominations, each  of  which  expected  to  erect  their 
own  house  of  worship  at  a  later  period.    The  term 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  245 

"Hickory  Church"  also  indicates  of  what  perish- 
able material  this  house  of  worship  was  built,  and 
was  in  keeping  with  the  original  idea.  It  was 
soon  left  unoccupied,  and  in  course  of  a  few  years 
it  crumbled  into  ruins.  More  than  half  a  century 
later  a  want  for  a  church  to  be  built  on  this  same 
site  was  again  felt,  when  St.  Peter's  Lutheran 
Church  was  organized,  and  a  more  durable  build- 
ing was  erected. 

As  was  the  case  with  all  the  first  German  set- 
tlers in  North  Carolina,  who  did  not  bring  their 
pastor  with  them,  so  likewise  were  the  Lutheran 
members  of  the  Hickory  Church  destitute  of  the 
means  of  grace  for  some  length  of  time,  and  as  no 
other  hope  of  obtaining  a  regularly  ordained  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel  presented  itself,  the  members 
were  resolved  to  send  to  Germany  for  a  pastor. 
In  this  manner  they  secured  the  services  of  Rev. 
Adolph  Kussmann  as  their  pastor,  and  Gottfried 
Arndt  as  their  schoolteacher. 

The  new  pastor  preached  but  one  year  in  the 
Hickory  Church  to  both  denominations,  after 
which  some  dissension  arose,  and  a  majority  of  the 
Lutherans  then  resolved  to  build  a  church  for 
themselves,  and  in  this  manner  originated  Zion's 
Church,  better  known  as  Organ  Church.  The 
members  of  the  German  Eeformed  Church  soon 
followed  the  example  of  their  Lutheran  brethren, 
and  likewise  built  a  new  church  on  another  loca- 
tion, which  they  named  Grace  Church,  but  is 
more  frequently  called  "The  Lower  Stone 
Church,"  on  account  of  its  position  lower  down 


246  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  stream  above  mentioned,  and  built  of  the  same 
material  as  Organ  Church. 

Before  the  building  of  Organ  Church  was  quite 
completed,  Rev.  A.  JSTussraann  left  this  congrega- 
tion, and  went  as  pastor  to  Buffalo  Creek  Church, 
in  Cabarrus  County. 

The  congregation,  which  now  had  a  church  but 
no  pastor,  sent  their  schoolteacher,  Gottfried  Arndt, 
to  be  ordained  to  the  office  of  the  ministry,  in  the 
year  1775.  He  served  them  through  the  trying 
period  of  the  Revolution,  until  1786,  when  he 
moved  to  the  Catawba  River,  residing  in  Lincoln 
County,  and  labored  in  that  field  to  the  close  of 
his  life. 


Section  12.  Early  History  of  St.  John's  Churchy 
Caharriis  County.,  N,  C. 

Cabarrus  County  is  known  in  the  early  records 
as  Mecklenburg  County,  in  which  it  was  included, 
but  was  formed  into  a  separate  county  in  the  year 
1792.  The  eastern  portion  of  it  was  settled  en- 
tirely by  Germans,  the  most  of  whom  came  from 
Pennsylvania. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War,  a  number  of 
Hessian  soldiers  deserted  from  the  British  army 
at  Savannah,  after  the  siege  of  that  place,  and 
found  their  way  to  the  German  settlement  on 
Dutch  Buffalo  Creek,  intermarried  with  these 
settlers,  and  were  thus  permanently  located  there. 
Thej^  in  a  measure,  supplied  the  loss  of  so  many 
young  men  in  that  settlement,  w4io  had  sacrificed 


IN  NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  247 

their  lives  in  the  service  of  their  country.  This  col- 
ony suffered  severely  during  that  dark  and  bloody 
period.  Although  no  regular  army  assailed  these 
Germans,  or  passed  through  their  settlement,  yet 
they  had  to  contend  much  with  the  Tories,  whilst 
many  of  their  young  men  enlisted  as  soldiers  in  the 
American  army.  One  family,  named  Schwartz- 
walder(Blackwelder),  had  seven  sons,  four  of  whom 
were  in  the  battle  of  Camden,  South  Carolina,  and 
two  or  three  of  them  found  soldiers'  graves  upon 
that  battlefield,  having  lost  their  lives  in  the  service 
of  their  country.  Others  shared  the  same  fate, 
whilst  those  at  home  had  several  skirmishes  with 
the  Tories.  The  following  account  of  the  action, 
which  one  of  these  early  settlers  took  in  the  war 
for  independence,  is  given  by  one  of  his  grand- 
sons, and  may  not  be  uninteresting: 

"John  Paul  Barringer,  who  took  an  active  part 
in  all  public  matters,  was  known  as  Captain  Bar- 
ringer long  before  the  Revolution,  and  during  this 
war,  though  too  old  for  regular  service,  took  the 
lead  against  the  Tories  in  his  section,  and  so  odi- 
ous did  he  become  to  them  from  his  efficient  and 
unceasing  efforts  against  them,  that  they  surprised 
him  in  his  bed  at  night,  and  posted  him  off  as  a 
prisoner  to  Camden,  where  he  remained  in  con- 
finement several  months,  if  not  during  the  re- 
mainder of  the  war.  In  the  meantime  the  Tories 
stole  and  destroyed  most  of  his  property,  and  left 
his  family,  then  afflicted  with  small-pox,  in  a  most 
helpless  and  distressing  condition." 

In  this  manner  did  the  greater  number  of  these 


248  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

German  settlers  sufter,  inasmuch  as  a  special  ha- 
tred was  manifested  towards  them  by  their  enemies 
daring  the  war,  since  they  were  residents  of  that 
patriotic  county,  whose  citizens  had  first  decLired 
their  sentiments  of  independence  in  the  Mecklen- 
burg Declaration,  May  20th,  1775.  Some  one  or 
two  German  names  from  this  section  of  that  county 
may  be  distinguished  as  signers  of  that  Declara- 
tion. 

Governor  Tryon,  who  came  to  this  part  of  N"orth 
Carolina  on  a  visit,  with  the  view  of  again  con- 
ciliating matters  in  favor  of  the  existing  govern- 
ment, some  few  years  before  the  Revolution,  when 
the  Regulators  had  enlivened  the  minds  of  the 
people  against  the  tyrannical  authorities  of  the 
Province,  arrived  in  the  settlement  on  Dutch  Buf- 
falo Creek,  and  lodged  with  Captain  Barringer, 
who  was  well  known  for  his  influence  and  hospi- 
talit3^ 

"The  story  is,"  continues  his  grandson,  "that 
the  Governor  appeared  in  full  uniform,  with  a 
cocked  hat  and  sword,  drank  freely  of  the  Cap- 
tain's rich  wine,  which  was  always  kept  on  hand, 
condescended  to  try  his  skill  in  mowing  the  green 
meadows  of  Dutch  Buffalo,  and  left  fully  per- 
suaded, so  kind  and  generous  was  the  entertain- 
ment, that  he  had  not  a  stancher  friend  in  all  the 
country  as  'the  gallant  Dutchman.'  But  in  this 
he  was,  of  course,  sadly  disappointed." 

In  the  old  church  record-book,  and  in  the  old 
minutes  of  the  I^orth  Carolina  Synod,  the  congre- 
gation of  St.  John's  is  known  as  "Dutch  Bufiklo 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  249 

Creek  Church,"  because  its  members  were  princi- 
pally located  along  that  stream  of  water,  and  be- 
cause their  first  place  of  worship  and.  their  first 
grave^-ard  had  its  location  near  the  same  creek, 
three  miles  distant  from  its  present  situation.  The 
first  church  edifice  was,  of  course,  exceedingly 
plain,  made  of  unhewn  logs,  and  served  the  people 
the  double  purpose  of  a  schoolhouse  and  place  of 
w^orship.  Both  the  German  Reformed  and  Lu- 
therans worshiped  in  the  same  building  for  a 
certain  period  of  time,  after  which  a  more  com- 
modious building  w^as  erected  for  the  united  wor- 
ship of  the  two  denominations,  about  half  a  mile 
removed  from  the  location  of  the  present  church 
edifice.  This  second  building,  in  point  of  archi- 
tectural style,  was  but  little  better  than  the  former, 
except  that  it  was  somewhat  larger,  and  fitted  for 
the  exclusive  use  of  Divine  worship. 

About  the  year  1771,  the  members  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church,  at  the  suggestion  of  Captain  John 
Paul  Barringer,  separated  themselves  from  their 
German  Reformed  brethren,  and  built  their  own 
church  on  the  site  of  the  upper  portion  of  the 
present  graveyard.  The  work  was  undertaken  by 
Daniel  Jarrett,  whilst  Captain  Barringer  acted  as 
the  building  committee.  This  church  was  built 
chiefly  at  his  own  expense,  and  out  of  gratitude  to 
him  the  congregation  had  a  pew  constructed  for 
the  special  benefit  of  himself  and  family,  which 
was  somewhat  raised  above  the  others,  located  in  a 
prominent  place  in  the  church,  and  inclosed.  He 
was  a  true-hearted  and  thorough  Lutheran,  devot- 


250  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

eclly  attached  to  his  church,  and  seemed  to  have 
been  a  defender  of  the  rights  of  the  German  set- 
tlers there,  and  a  leading  man  among  them. 

It  was  not  until  the  year  1774,  that  the  congre- 
gation obtained  their  first  pastor,  who  had  been 
laboring  about  a  year  and  some  months  at  Organ 
Church  and  in  Salisbury,  and  who  had  been 
brought  to  America  by  a  deputation  sent  from 
Organ  and  St.  John's  Churches  to  Germany,  in 
1773.  He  located  himself  about  one  and  a  half 
miles  east  of  St.  John's  Church,  on  a  tract  of  land 
of  his  own  entry  or  purchase,  and  labored  faith- 
fully all  the  remaining  daj-s  of  his  life  among  this 
people.  The  congregation  also  secured  about  the 
same  time  the  services  of  a  Mr.  Friesland  as  their 
schoolteacher. 

On  the  22d  of  October,  1782,  three  benevolent 
members  of  the  church  council,  Jacob  Fegert, 
Marx  Haus,  and  Jacob  Thieme,  paid  the  sum  of 
fifty  shillings,  the  accustomed  rate,  for  one  hun- 
dred acres  of  government  land,  on  a  portion  of 
which  the  church  had  already  been  built,  and  en- 
tered it  "in  trust  for  the  congregation  of  Dutch 
Buffalo  Meeting-House."  This  wise  procedure 
manifested  considerable  forethought  in  those  first 
members  of  the  church,  for  the  land  is  now  valu- 
able, and  has  been  of  much  service  to  the  congre- 
gation. 

A  short  time  before  the  close  of  the  war,  which 
had  already  so  sadly  affected  all  the  peaceful  pur- 
suits of  life,  and  disarranged  much  of  the  aftUirs 
of  the  church,  when  the  prospect  of  peace  and  pros- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUIH   CAROLINA.  251 

perity  reanimated  all  hearts,  a  constitution  was 
adopted  for  the  government  of  this  congregation. 
It  is  written  in  the  German  lano^uao^e,  and  in  Pas- 
tor  jN^ussmann's  handwriting,  inscribed  in  the  an- 
tiquated church-book,  still  carefully  preserved. 

This  constitution  was  compiled,  as  stated  by 
Rev.  JSTussmann,  from  the  *'Kirchenordnung  of 
our  Evangelical  brethren  in  Smyrna,  and  the  one 
used  in  England  and  Holland,  but  made  suitable 
to  the  circumstances  of  our  country."  From  this 
constitution,  which  is  exceedingly  strict,  both  in 
doctrine  and  discipline,  the  following  facts  are 
gathered: 

1.  That  the  church  was  placed  under  the  super- 
vision of  the  Consistory  of  Hanover  and  the  Uni- 
versity of  Gbttingen,  and  that,  whenever  the 
congregation  should  be  in  want  of  a  pastor,  ap- 
plication was  to  be  made  to  that  Consistory  or 
University.  However,  in  case  of  war  or  other 
untoward  circumstances,  when  correspondence 
would  necessarily  be  interrupted,  the  congrega- 
tion was  then  to  apply  to  the  ministry  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Pennsylvania  Synod. 

2.  That  the  pastor  was  bound-  to  confess  himself 
with  heart  and  mouth  to  the  symbolical  books  of  our 
Evangelical  Church. 

3.  That  the  pastor  was  to  be  in  regular  corres- 
pondence with  the  brethren  of  the  same  faith  in 
Europe;  that  he  was  to  send  them  minute  reports 
of  church  matters  every  six  weeks,  asking  aid  and 
counsel  whenever  the  circumstances  required  it, 
as  soon  as  the  long-wished-for  peace  would  once 


252  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

more  open  conveinences  for  coiTesponclence  be- 
tween Europe  and  America. 

4.  A  regular  support  for  the  pastor  and  school- 
teacher was  expected  from  the  members,  and  be- 
fore they  could  engage  the  services  of  either,  it 
was  made  binding  upon  them  to  state  the  positive 
annual  amount  of  salary  for  their  support  in  the 
written  call.  A  portion  of  the  schoolteacher's 
salary  consisted  in  the  use  of  a  certain  amount  of 
good  land,  which  the  members  were  to  cultivate 
for  liim,  and  also  to  gather  the  grain,  hay,  &c., 
into  his  barn,  when  the  proper  season  arrived. 

5.  Provision  was  also  made  for  orphan  children 
and  such  other  persons,  as  were  in  needy  circum- 
stances. 

6.  All  marriages  had  to  be  proclaimed,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  the  countr}^,  three  Sundays 
in  succession  before  the  marriage  could  take  place, 
and  none  except  tlie  minister  was  allowed  to  per- 
form the  ceremony. 

7.  The  church  council  were  usually  designated, 
according  to  the  recommendation  of  this  constitu- 
tion, as  adjunct  executors  in  all  w^ills  and  testa- 
ments, for  the  purpose  of  taking  special  care  of 
the  children  of  the  deceased  in  their  religious 
education. 

8.  The  following  order  of  service  for  public 
worship  in  the  sanctuary  was  established: 

a.  A  hymn  of  praise. 

h.  A  collect,  or  the  epistle  for  the  day. 

c.  The  principal  hymn. 

d.  Reading  of  the  Scriptures. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  253 

€.  The  creed,  or  a  short  Sunday  hymn. 

/.  The  sermon. 

g.  The  singing  of  a  few  verses. 

h.  A  short  catechetical  exercise. 

i.  A  long  prayer,  suitable  either  to  the  catechi- 
zation,  sermon,  or  other  circumstances. 

k.  The  benediction. 

l.  The  concluding  verse  of  the  principal  hymn. 

9.  The  liturgy  adopted  by  this  congregation 
was  the  one  used  in  the  German  Lutheran  Court 
Chapel  of  St.  James,  in  London  ;  and  the  Marburg 
hymn-book,  which  was  reprinted  for  the  use  of  the 
churches  in  Germantown  and  Philadelphia,  was 
also  introduced  in  the  worship  of  this  congregation. 


Section  IS,  The  Delegation  sent  from  North  Caro- 
lina to  Europe  for  Pastors  and  Teachers,  and 
the  subsequent  organization  of  the  Helmstaedt 
Mission  Society. 

The  German  settlements  in  the  interior  of  North 
Carolina,  although  commenced  in  the  year  1750, 
were  of  very  gradual  growth,  owing  to  the  pecu- 
liar manner  in  which  they  were  made.  They 
were  not  favored  with  shiploads  of  emigrants 
direct  from  Germany;  their  increase  of  colonists 
depended  on  the  overland  route,  made  in  wagons 
and  on  foot,  from  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania. 
It  took  all  of  fifteen  or  twenty  years  before  these 
settlers  were  sufficiently  numerous  to  form  them- 
selves into  congregations,  but  after  these  congre- 


254  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

gations  were  organized,  the  urgent  want  of  the 
regular  administration  of  the  word  and  sacraments 
was  also  felt.  The  slow  but  gradual  increase  of 
these  German  settlements  will  account  for  the  ap- 
parent tardiness  which  these  settlers  manifested 
in  sending  for  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  and  the 
manner  in  which  they  journeyed  to  North  Caro- 
lina made  it  almost  impossible  for  them  to  take 
their  pastors  w^ith  them.  But  after  the  harvest 
was  ripe  for  the  sickle,  where  to  obtain  pastors 
for  their  newly  organized  congregations,  that  was 
a  question  not  easily  answered.  The  Synod  of 
Pennsylvania  had  no  ministers  to  spare,  for  even 
in  that  favored  Province  the  want  of  ministers 
was  greatly  felt,  having  to  apply  constantly  to  the 
Church  in  Germany  to  supply  the  wants  of  their 
ever-increasing  German  population  and  churches, 
and  to  go  farther  South  for  ministerial  help  was 
utterly  useless,  for  there  the  want  and  scarcity  was 
still  greater. 

In  view  of  this  great  want,  felt  everywhere 
among  the  Germans  in  America  at  this  time.  Dr. 
Muhlenberg  expresses  himself  as  follows  (Evang. 
Eeview,  vol.  i,  p.  414):  "True,  enough  teachers 
and  false  apostles  may  be  found,  who  pervert  the 
word  of  God,  and  manufacture  the  most  baneful 
sects  with  it!  0  how  necessary,  useful,  and  con- 
solatory would  it  not  be,  if  we  were  able  to  erect 
a  long-wished-for  institution,  in  which  Catechets 
could  be  trained  who  would  be  capable  and  willing 
to  teach  school  during  the  week,  and  to  deliver  a 
discourse  (Vortrag)  on  the  Lord's  day.     It  would 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  255 

not  be  necessary  to  torment  such  subjects  many 
years  with  foreign  languages ;  it  would  be  suffi- 
cient if  they  possessed  mother  wit,  a  compendious 
knowledge  and  experience  of  the  marrow  and  sap 
of  theology,  could  write  a  tolerable  hand,  under- 
stood their  vernacular  (German)  and  the  English 
tongues,  and  the  elements  of  Latin.  They  should 
also  possess  a  robust  bodily  constitution,  able  to 
endure  every  kind  of  food  and  weather,  and  espe- 
cially have  a  heart  that  sincerely  loves  Jesus  and 
his  lambs. 

"In  America  there  are  schools,  gymnasiums, 
academies,  and  universities  enough  (and  their 
number  is  multiplying  with  the  increased  taste) 
for  lawyers,  notaries,  physicians,  philosophers, 
candidates  for  benefices,  critics,  orators,  sea  cap- 
tains, merchants,  artists,  &c.,  &c.,  but  who  helps 
the  half-dead  man  that  has  fallen  among  thieves, 
and  lies  bleeding?  Priests  and  Levites  pass  by  on 
the  other  side,  for  their  law  forbids  them  to  touch 
anything  unclean.  And  if  occasionally  some  be 
found  who  profess  themselves  Samaritans,  they 
have,  notwithstanding,  ofttimes  unrighteous  ob- 
jects; bind  up,  it  is  true,  the  wounds  of  the  help- 
less sufferer,  and  set  him  on  their  own  beast,  but, 
at  the  same  time,  expect  as  a  recompense  to  own 
him  entirely  and  to  lead  him  to  their  sectarian  inn, 
when  the  proverb  is  verified,  '  The  remedy  is  w^orse 
than  the  disease,'  as  can  be  shown  by  many  ex- 
amples. This  matter  belongs  to  the  pia  desideria 
(pious  desires),  which  are  more  easily  accomplished 
in  theory  than  in  practice." 


256  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

The  newly  organized  Lutheran  congregations 
in  E'orth  Carolina  had  only  one  other  resource 
remaining,  and  that  was — to  send  to  Europe  for 
pastors  and  teachers  for  this  new  and  promising 
field  of  labor  among  the  Germans  in  this  Prov- 
ince; and  these  congregations  were  not  slow  in 
making  this  resource  available,  as  may  be  seen  by 
examining  the  records  of  the  old  church-book  be- 
longing to  Organ  Church.  They  well  knew  that 
to  send  letters  or  petitions  to  Europe  for  pastors 
and  teachers  would  accomplish  but  little,  hence 
they  resolved  to  send  a  delegation,  who  could 
make  personal  appeals  to  the  hearts  of  their 
brethren  of  the  same  faith,  describe  the  wants  of 
the  churches  in  J^orth  Carolina,  and  answer  any 
question  relative  to  the  country  in  which  they  re- 
sided, support  of  the  pastor,  &c.  Accordingly^, 
in  the  year  1772,  Christopher  Rintelmann,  from 
Organ  Church,  in  Rowan  County,  and  Christopher 
Layrle,  from  St.  John's  Church,  in  Mecklenburg 
County,  were  sent  as  a  delegation  to  Europe,  for 
the  purpose  of  applying  to  the  Consistory  Council 
(Consistorialrath)  of  Hanover,  in  Germany,  for  a 
supply  of  ministers  of  the  gospel  and  school- 
teachers, for  the  various  Lutheran  cono^resrations 
then  organized  in  !N"orth  Carolina.  The  reason 
is  also  stated,  why  the  delegation  were  instructed 
to  apply  to  the  proper  authorities  in  Hanover  in 
preference  to  any  other  place  or  kingdom:  "Be- 
cause at  that  time  l^orth  Carolina,  as  well  as  all 
the  other  free  American   States,  was  under  the 


IN  NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAEOLINA.  257 

jurisdiction  of  the  king  of  England,  who  was  at 
the  same  time  elector  of  Hanover." 

These  commissioners  traveled  first  to  London, 
and  from  thence  they  journeyed  to  Hanover,  and 
there,  in  accordance  with  their  instructions,  to 
hring  at  least  one  pastor  and  a  schoolteacher  with 
them,  and  through  the  kind  efforts  of  "the  late 
Consistory  counsellor.  Gotten,"  they  obtained  the 
Rev.  Adolph  Nussmann  as  their  pastor,  and  Mr. 
Gottfried  Arndt  as  schoolteacher;  both  of  whom 
arrived  safely  in  N"orth  Carolina  in  1773. 

But  this  was  not  all  the  good  which  these  com- 
missioners effected,  for  by  their  faithful  represen- 
tations of  the  condition  and  want  of  the  churclies, 
the  Lutheran  congregations  in  North  Carolina,  as 
already  seen  from  the  constitution  of  St.  John's 
Church,  were  placed  under  the  supervision  of  the 
Consistory  of  Hanover  and  the  University  of 
Gottingen,  from  which  they  were  promised  and 
expected  both  pecuniary  assistance  and  a  further 
supply  of  ministers  and  teachers;  and  had  it  not 
been  that  the  "Revolutionary  War  broke  out  shortly 
afterwards,  wliich  stopped  all  communication  with 
Europe  for  a  period  of  nearly  eight  3^ears,  there 
is  no  calculating  how^  much  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  the  Carolinas  would  have  been  benefited  by 
the  arrangement  made  with  the  parent  Church  in 
Hanover.  Even  after  the  war  ended,  as  will  be 
seen  in  the  next  chapter,  the  money  that  had  been 
collected  in  Hanover  for  St.  John's  Church,  which 
was  feared  to  have  been  lost  or  forfeited  on  ac- 
count of  the  action  which  the  Germans  in  North 

22 


258  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Carolina  took  in  the  war,  was  nevertheless  paid 
over  to  that  congregation,  according  to  the  origi- 
nal intent  of  the  donors. 

One  ettect,  however,  the  Revolutionary  War 
did  have  upon  the  Consistory  of  Hanover  and 
the  University  of  Gottingen,  although  the  cause 
or  reason  is  not  stated;  the  supervision  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina  was  placed 
in  the  hands  of  the  professors  of  the  Julius  Charles 
University  of  Helmstaedt,  in  the  Duchy  of  Bruns- 
wick. Doubtless  the  parent  Church  in  Hanover 
became  indifferent  to  the  wants  of  the  Lutheran 
congregations  in  I^orth  Carolina,  because  the  re- 
volt of  the  American  Colonies  was  against  the 
reigning  house  of  Hanover,  who  was,  as  already 
seen,  at  the  same  time  king  of  Great  Britain, 
which  may  have  occasioned  the  transfer  of  the 
care  of  the  North  Carolina  mission  iield  to  the 
Duchy  of  Brunswick. 

jRev.  John  Caspar  Velihuseii,  D.D.,  theological 
professor  of  the  Julius  Charles  University,  in 
Helmstaedt,  and  abbot  of  the  cloister  of  Marien- 
thai,  became  the  leading  spirit  of  this  newly- 
formed  mission  society,  organized  for  the  super- 
vision and  care  of  the  Lutheran  churches  in  North 
Carolina;  with  him  were  associated  the  Rev.  Prof. 
Henke,  and  the  Professors  Crell,  Kliigel,  and 
Bruns.  The  labors  of  this  society,  if  formed  be- 
fore the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  were  in- 
terrupted dui-ing  that  stormy  period,  when  all 
communication  between  Europe  and  America 
ceased,  but  became  exceedingly  efficient  for  the 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAKOLINA.  259 

welfare  of  the  E"ortli  Carolina  mission  field  soon 
after  peace  was  again  established,  and  to  this 
Ileln-iStaedt  mission  society  is  all  the  honor  due, 
for  haviiig  saved  the  Lutheran  Church  in  ]!^ortli 
Carolina  from  sinking  into  decay,  if  not  from 
total  annihiUition.  It  commenced,  or  recom- 
menced, its  labors  for  the  Korth  Carolina  mission 
field  on  the  14th  of  October,  1786. 


Section  H.  The  Labors  of  Bevs.  Nussman  and  Arndt 
in  North  Carolina, 

The  Lutheran  Church  in  I^Torth  Carolina  was 
peculiarly  fortunate  in  obtaining  the  services  of 
so  learned,  devoted  and  self-sacrificing  a  Chris- 
tian minister  as  was  its  first  pastor,  the  Eev. 
Adolph  [N'ussmann.  His  praise  was  in  all  the 
churches;  men  did  him  honor  who  had  never 
known  him,  but  heard  of  his  influence  and  suc- 
cessful labors  among  the  German  settlers.  Rev. 
Dr.  Caruthers,  a  Presbyterian  minister,  speaks  of 
him  in  the  highest  terms  of  praise.  Rev.  Dr. 
Velthusen  in  Germany  does  the  same.  JN'ussmann 
was  indeed  a  man  who  might  have  tilled  with 
honor  the  highest  position  in  any  Church  or  liter- 
ary institution,  but  was  content  to  labor  for  the 
cause  of  Christ,  and  to  sacrifice  himself  among 
the  unambitious  but  honest  German  agriculturists 
of  North  Carolina. 

He  located  himself  at  first  in  Rowan  County, 
near  Second  Creek,  and  served  Organ  and  Salis- 
bury Churches,  whilst  the  newly  arrived  teacher, 


260  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

J.  G.  Arndt,  occupied  himself  in  giving  instruc- 
tion to  the  children  and  youth. 

After  having  taken  a  survey  of  the  field  of  min- 
isterial labor  in  the  interior  of  the  Province,  Rev. 
I^ussmann  perceived  that  it  was  already  ripe  for 
the  harvest,  and  that  he  could  effect  but  little  by 
himself;  the  demands  upon  his  time  and  energy 
would  be  far  too  great,  were  he  to  endeavor  to 
supply  all  the  Lutheran  churches,  then  existing  in 
that  Province,  with  the  appointed  means  of  grace, 
and  to  labor  simply  as  a  missionary,  organizing 
congregations,  preaching  and  administering  the 
sacraments  among  and  in  all  of  them,  would  effect 
but  little  good,  unless  these  churches  could  be 
soon  supplied  with  pastors:  a  number  of  congre- 
gations were  already  organized,  and  were  hunger- 
ing after  the  bread  of  life. 

His  only  alternative  was  to  have  the  teacher 
Arndt  ordained,  who  indeed  had  received  an  ex- 
cellent education  in  Germany,  where  much  is  re- 
quired of  a  teacher,  and  make  him  a  co-laborer 
in  this  hopeful  field;  so,  after  having  properly 
arranged  all  Church  affairs  in  Rowan  Count}^  he 
resigned  the  charge  into  the  hands  of  Pev.  Arndt, 
and  removed  to  St.  John's  Church,  in  Mecklen- 
burg County,  where  he  labored  industriously  and 
faithfully  all  the  remaining  years  of  his  life.  He 
also  made  a  number  of  missionating  tours  to 
Davidson,  Guilford,  Orange,  Stokes  and  For- 
sythe  Counties,  "strengthening  the  things  that 
remained,"   organizing  Lutheran    congregations, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  261 

and  serving  them  occasionally,  particularly  in  the 
two  last-mentioned  counties. 

Rev.  Arndt's  labors  were  chiefly  confined  to 
Rowan  County  until  after  the  close  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary War,  when,  in  178G,  he  removed  to 
Lincoln  County,  and  became  the  acknowledged 
founder  of  the  Lutheran  Church  west  of  the 
Catawba  River. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  ^ussmann's  labors, 
confined  to  the  wants  of  St.  John's  Church,  would 
be  comparatively  light,  except  when  he  made  mis- 
sionary visits  to  other  counties — nothing  is  farther 
from  the  truth.  It  was  the  custom  in  those  co- 
lonial times,  when  the  population  was  sparse,  to 
have  but  one  church  centrally  located  in  a  county 
or  district,  and  the  people  would  come  from  a 
great  distance  to  attend  divine  service,  and  attach 
themselves  to  the  congregation,  the  bounds  of 
which  often  embraced  a  territory  within  the  radius 
of  fifty  miles,  except  where  it  came  near  to  another 
church  of  the  same  faith  in  an  adjoining  county. 
This  was  the  case  with  St.  John's  Church,  out  of 
which  sprang  a  number  of  other  congregations, 
located  now  in  the  same  and  difierent  counties, 
all  of  which  were  faithfully  and  regularly  supplied 
with  the  word  and  sacraments  by  Pastor  i^uss- 
mann,  until  after  his  death  the  necessity  arose 
for  organizing  new  and  separate  churches.  The 
same  may  likewise  be  said  of  the  labors  of  Rev. 
Arndt,  inasmucli  as  Rowan  County  embraced  at 
that  time  all  the  territory  of  Davie,  Iredell,  and 
Davidson  Counties. 


262  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Fifteen  years  did  these  two  faithful  servants  of 
God  labor  alone,  under  many  difficulties  and  pri- 
vations, and  through  all  the  stormy  period  of  the 
Revolution,  before  any  additional  laborers  were 
sent  to  their  assistance;  however,  they  succeeded, 
b}^  the  blessing  of  God,  in  preserving  life  among 
those  congregations  that  were  remotely  located 
from  them,  and  in  building  up  those  of  which 
they  were  the  regular  pastors. 

Dr.  Caruthers  states,  that  in  connection  with 
the  occasional  labors  of  Rev.  ISTussmann  among 
the  German  settlers  of  Guilford  and  Orange,  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Beuthahn,  a  German  Reformed  minister, 
organized  congregations  in  that  territorj^,  and 
preached  for  them,  but  supported  himself  princi- 
pally by  teaching  a  German  school  in  the  south- 
east corner  of  Guilford  County.  Many  of  these 
congregations  held  the  church  property  jointly 
with  the  Lutherans,  and  each  denomination  had 
alternate  use  of  these  churches. 


Section  15.  Character  of  the  Lutheran  ministry  in 
the  Carolinas  jjrevious  to  the  Revolutionary  ^¥ar  ; 
their  'piety.,  learning.,  firm  adherence  to  the  Con- 
fessions of  their  Church.,  faithfulness  in  the  dis- 
charge of  their  ministericd  duties;  liturgical 
ivorship,  ^c. 

The  testimon}^  of  all  the  ancient  records  of  the 
ante-revolutionary  period,  concerning  the  charac- 
ter of  the  early  Lutheran  ministry  in  the  Carolinas, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  263 

is  SO  excellent  and  so  impartially  written,  even  by 
those  who  were  in  no  way  connected  with  the 
Lutheran  Church,  tliat  it  is  refreshing  to  read 
them ;  God  be  praised,  that,  in  the  period  of  the 
founding  of  our  Church  in  these  two  provinces,  so 
excellent  a  beginning  was  made,  the  best  and  the 
most  competent  men  were  sent  by  the  parent 
Church  in  Europe  to  labor  in  this  field;  and  whilst 
the  great  want  of  ministers  at  that  time  did  bring 
into  the  field  some,  who  were  not  so  distinguished 
for  their  learning,  and  others,  like  Revs.  Wartman 
and  Daser,  who  were  possessed  of  characteristics 
calculated  to  interfere  with  their  usefulness,  never- 
theless, the  majority  of  the  Lutheran  ministers  of 
that  period,  and  who  may  be  regarded  as  the  early 
fathers  of  their  Church,  and  certainly  the  best 
entitled  to  that  distinction,  were  men  of  the  noblest 
traits  of  character,  and  efiicient  in  accomplishing 
a  vast  amount  of  good.  Their  faith  and  piety 
were  made  manifest  without  seeking  public  noto- 
riety, and  the  noblest  monument  reared  to  their 
memory  are  the  works  which  followed  them,  which 
still  speak  to  their  praise,  though  many  of  them 
now  slumber  in  unknown  graves. 

They  were  men  of  learning,  and  might  have 
filled  positions  of  honor  and  usefulness  in  their 
native  country ;  but,  possessed  of  the  true  mission- 
ary spirit,  they  sacrificed  all  temporal  advantages, 
in  order  that  they  might  labor  for  the  welfare  of 
the  souls  of  their  neglected  brethren  in  America, 
and  build  up  the  Church  in  that  section  of  the 
country  to  which  they  had  been  sent.     And  when 


264  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

they  arrived,  great  were  the  privations  and  hard- 
ships which  they  had  to  endure,  and  which  can 
never  he  fully  estimated  without  contemplating 
all  the  circumstances  of  colonial  times;  they  not 
only  felt  the  ahsence  of  relatives,  friends  of  their 
3'outh,  college  and  university  associates,  hut  also 
the  want  of  frequent  intercourse  with  ministerial 
hrethren,  of  men  of  learning  and  refinement,  of 
the  literature  of  the  day,  of  the  comforts  of  ad- 
vanced civilization,  and  even  of  good  roads  and 
conveniences  for  travelling.  They  were  isolated 
and,  so  to  speak,  walled-in  by  the  primeval  forests, 
and  were  subjected  to  the  constant  intercourse 
with  persons  who,  whilst  they  respected,  esteemed 
and  loved  their  ministers,  never  could  enter  into 
their  feelings  of  refinement,  nor  appreciate  any 
intellectual  conversation. 

The  early  records  also  indicate,  that  the  Lutheran 
ministers  of  that  period  were  firm  believers  in  the 
doctrines  of  their  Church,  and  unconditional  ad- 
herents to  the  manner  in  which  these  doctrines 
were  set  forth  in  the  Symbolical  books.  For 
proof  of  this  we  are  directed  first  to  the  Urlsperger 
Reports.  Eev.  Bolzius  makes  the  following  record 
in  his  journal,  under  date,  May  15,  1734:  "  Tliis 
morning  we  returned  to  Habercorn,  where  we 
administered  the  Lord's  Supper  to  two  sick  per- 
sons, who  rejoiced  that  their  souls  were  refreshed 
with  the  eating  and  drinking  the  body  and  blood 
of  Christ.  We  held  a  short  preparatory  discourse 
on  the  words :  *  Whosoever  will  come  unto  me,  I 
will  in  no  wise  cast  out,'  to  which  they  attentively 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  265 

listened  with  tears  of  contrition,"  &c.  Although 
the  Symholical  Books  are  not  mentioned  in  this 
extract  of  Rev.  Bolzius'  diary,  yet  the  distinctive 
belief  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  reference  to  the 
Lord's  Supper  is  set  forth,  plainly  indicating  the 
faith  of  these  Ebenezer  pastors.  It  is  also  admitted 
that  Rev.  Bolzius  did  not  reside  in  Carolina,  but 
at  that  time  he  occnsionally  visited  Charleston  and 
Purysburg,  and  hibored  among  the  Germans  re- 
siding there;  and  the  extract,  as  above  given,  oc- 
curs in  his  diary  of  a  journey  made  to  Charleston 
for  this  very  purpose. 

The  next  testimony  on  this  subject  is  given  in 
the  journal  of  Rev.  Br.  Muhlenberg.  During  his 
visit  to  Charleston,  a  petition  of  the  members  of 
the  vacant  Lutheran  congregation  in  that  city  for  a 
pastor  was  sent  to  Europe,  in  w^hich  they  describe 
the  kind  of  pastor  they  were  desirous  to  obtain, 
and  in  Avhich  description  the  following  clause  oc- 
curs :  "  Who  is  able  and  willing  to  administer  the 
Holy  Sacraments  agreeably  to  the  articles  of  our 
unaltered  Augsburg  Confession."  Whilst  it  is  ad- 
mitted that  the  Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  is  the  author 
of  that  petition,  it  was  nevertheless  undersigned 
b}^  all,  or  nearly  all,  of  the  members  of  St.  John's 
Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina. 
After  the  Revolutionary  War  this  congregation 
formed  a  union  with  Roman  Catholics  and  Ger- 
man Reformed,  as  reported  by  Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen, 
"but  from  the  bciJ^innino;  it  was  not  so." 

Another  decided  testimony  is  furnished  from 
the  first  constitution  of  St.  John's  Church,  Meck- 

23 


266  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

leubiirg  (Cabarrus)  Comity,  Is"orth  Carolina,  writ- 
ten by  the  founder  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  that 
Province,  Rev.  Adolph  Kussmann,  which  reads  as 
follows:  "Every  pastor  of  this  church  is  bound  to 
confess  himself  with  heart  and  mouth  to  the  Sym- 
bolical Books  of  our  Evangelical  Church."  From 
the  same  constitution  we  also  learn  that  the  wor- 
ship in  that  congregation  w^as  liturgical,  as  it  was, 
indeed,  in  all  the  Lutheran  churches  in  the  Caro- 
linas  at  that  early  period,  conforming  very  closely 
to  the  usages  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Germany. 
The  early  fathers  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
the  Caroliiias  were  conscientious  and  faithful  in 
the  discharge  of  their  ministerial  duties,  perform- 
ino^  labors  for  the  welfare  of  the  Church  even  out- 
side  of  their  own  congregations,  and  were  always 
ready  in  word  and  doctrine  to  lead  souls  to  Christ. 
They  generally  devoted  all  their  time  to  the  work 
coujmitted  to  their  charge.  Some  of  them  had  a 
very  meagre  support,  especially  in  the  rural  dis- 
tricts, where  the  salary  consisted  principally  in  the 
productions  of  the  soil,  which  the  members  of 
their  congregations  brought  to  them,  and  where 
this  was  insufficient  for  the  support  of  themselves 
and  families,  they  labored  with  their  own  hands 
on  their  farms,  or  on  lands  belonging  to  their 
churches. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  267 

Section  16.  Gradual  Improvement  of  the  Condition  of 
the  German  Colonies  and  of  their  Churches  in 
the  Carolinas^  and  bright  Prospects  for  the  Fu- 
ture. 

The  German  colonies  of  [N'orth  and  South  Caro- 
lina were  now  firmly  established.  The  people  had 
nothing  more  to  fear  from  the  incursions  of  the 
Indians,  who  had  mostl}'  been  driven  beyond  the 
Alleghany  Mountains;  the  whole  Atlantic  slope, 
from  N^ew  England  to  Georgia,  w^as  in  the  posses- 
sion of  the  white  settlers,  who  could  quietly  and 
safely  remain  at  home,  and  enrich  themselves  by 
the  cultivation  of  the  soil. 

The  peculiar  adaptation  of  the  German  colonists 
to  agricultural  pursuits  was  soon  rewarded  by  thrift 
and  abundance.  They  became  attached  to  their 
new  homes,  and  their  children  intermarrying  with 
each  other,  bound  the  settlers  together  in  bonds 
of  relationship,  as  well  as  of  friendship.  Their 
love  for  their  former  homes  beyond  the  sea  and  in 
other  America])  provinces  was  lost,  in  course  of 
time,  in  the  feeling  of  general  prosperity,  whilst 
those,  who  were  "to  the  manor  born,"  knew  and 
loved  no  country  so  well,  as  the  one  in  which  they 
resided.  The  trials,  want  and  hardships  of  early 
colonization  were  at  an  end,  and  bright  prospects 
for  the  future  appeared  to  greet  every  settler,  who 
was  willing  to  labor,  and  to  manage  his  affairs 
prudently. 

The  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas  likewise 
presented  hopeful  prospects  for  the  future  at  this 


268  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

period  immediatelj^  preceding  the  RevolutioDary 
AVar.  Congregations  were  being  organized,  and 
churches  were  erected  wherever  the  number  of 
settlers  was  sufficiently  large  to  warrant  them  in 
taking  these  steps;  often  they  did  not  always  wait 
for  the  aid  of  ministerial  counsel,  but  took  the 
necessary  steps  themselves.  The  scarcity  of  min- 
isterial labor  was  still  greatly  felt,  yet  the  German 
settlers  who  had  no  pastors,  were  occasionally  vis- 
ited by  the  pastors  of  their  own  faith  in  more  for- 
tunate congregations;  besides,  the  parent  Church 
in  the  Fatherland  had  now  become  interested  in 
their  spiritually  destitute  condition,  and  the  pros- 
pect was  good  that  all  the  churches  would  shortly 
be  supplied  with  either  pastors  or  missionaries. 
This  hope,  or  rather  this  dependence,  whilst  it 
promised  the  Germans  in  the  Carolinas  a  speedy 
supply  of  the  means  of  grace,  exerted,  nevertheless, 
an  unwholesome  influence  upon  them.  No  effort 
was  made  to  organize  a  synod  for  the  purpose  of 
regulating  their  Church  affiiirs;  some  of  their  min- 
isters labored  in  an  independent  and  isolated 
sphere,  whilst  others  were  under  the  control  of 
the  parent  Church  in  Germany,  to  which  they  re- 
ported regularly,  and  from  which  the^^  received 
aid,  direction  and  counsel.  IN'or  did  they  feel  the 
necessity  of  establishing  an  institution  of  learning 
to  educate  ministers  of  their  own  in  America,  and 
thus  be  enabled  to  fill  the  vacant  churches  with 
pastors,  which,  if  properly  managed,  could  have 
been  done  with  but  little  outlaj'  of  money  in  those 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  269 

days  of  economy  and  thrift,  Lad  tliey  not  bad  tlie 
prospect  of  receiving  more  ministers  from  Europe. 
Rev.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  foresaw  this  evil  and  its 
consequent  effects,  but  whilst  he  lamented  the 
Vv'ant  of  such  a  literary  institution,  he  made  no 
personal  effort  to  accomplish  the  good  work,  or 
was  prevented  from  so  doing  by  the  indifference 
of  the  Church  in  regard  to  this  matter.  Not  long 
after  that  time  the  Revolutionary  War  commenced, 
when  it  was  too  late  to  make  the  attempt,  for  the 
mind,  heart  and  wants  of  the  colonists  were  set 
in  another  direction. 


Section   17.    The  Effect  of  the  Revolutionary  War 
xiipon  the  German  Settlements  and  their  Churches. 

War  is  one  of  the  most  destructive  calamities 
with  which  any  people  can  be  afflicted,  bearing 
many  evils  in  its  train,  and  seriously  affecting  all 
the  affairs  and  interests  of  civil,  social  and  ecclesi- 
astical life.  Especially  was  this  the  case  with  the 
Revolutionary  War  in  its  effect  upon  the  Ameri- 
can people,  who  had  but  recently  emerged  from 
all  the  evils  and  hardships  of  early  colonization, 
and  who  had  as  yet  no  independent  national  exist- 
ence, no  regular  army  and  navy  ;  and  although  the 
war  was  not  altogether  an  unexpected  event,  yet 
when  it  did  break  out,  it  found  the  Colonies  but 
little  prepared  for  it,  and  consequently  must  have 
been  productive  of  much  suffering  and  many  evils. 

The  effect  of  the  war  upon  the  German  settle- 
ments was  the  same  as  on  all  the  other  Colonies. 


270  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

It  arrested  all  progress,  it  interrupted  the  pursuit 
of  every  peaceful  art,  except  that  which  was  nec- 
essary to  support  life.  Many  a  plowshare  rusted 
away  in  its  unfinished  furrow,  many  a  field  lay 
fiillow  for  a  long  time,  little  improvement  was 
made  anywhere.  The  strength  of  manhood,  which 
was  needed  at  home  for  the  deveK:>pment  of  the 
resources  of  the  country,  was  more  urgently  re- 
quired to  fill  up  the  rank  and  file  of  the  army; 
and  the  women  of  that  period  were  obliged  to  per- 
form, to  a  certain  extent,  the  hard  labor  that  was 
needed  to  cultivate  the  soil,  and  to  gather  and 
prepare  its  productions  for  home  consumption, 
whilst  the  long  winter  evenings  were  spent  in 
making  articles  of  clothing  for  the  family  and  for 
the  relatives  in  the  army. 

War  had  its  sad  eftect  also  upon  the  faith  and 
morals  of  the  people.  When  it  frequently  occurs 
that  brother  is  arrayed  against  brother,  and  one 
neighborhood  known  to  be  in  open  hostility  to 
the  other,  when  it  was  lawful  for  the  adherents 
of  royalty,  called  Tories,  to  rob  and  plunder,  and 
even  to  destroy  human  life  at  pleasure,  and  re- 
prisals on  the  American  or  Whig  side  were  like- 
wise not  wanting,  it  can  be  readily  imagined  what 
the  state  of  piety  and  morals  must  have  been  at 
such  times  of  almost  general  anarchy.  When  law 
and  order,  in  times  of  peace,  can  scarcely  restrain 
the  passions  of  men,  what  must  have  been  the  con- 
dition of  society  during  the  prevalence  of  a  war  for 
the  establishment  of  a  new  government,  which 
afilicted  our  country  for  so  long  a  time,  and  con- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  271 

cerning  which,  to  a  large  extent,  the  opinions  and 
feelings  of  the  people  were  divided! 

Upon  the  different  churches  the  war  had  a  most 
deleterious  effect;  it  greatly  reduced  their  nuniher 
of  membership;  it  caused  those  who  remained  at 
home  to  become  careless  and  indifferent  about 
their  spiritual  welfare;  many  of  the  churches  in 
the  cities  were  used  as  hospitals  for  the  sick  and 
wounded,  and  the  congregations  w-ere  more  or 
less  scattered  to  where  the  people  were  less  ex- 
posed to  the  devastations  of  tiie  hostile  armj^; 
whilst  in  the  country  the  danger  of  being  robbed 
and  plundered  during  absence  from  home,  in 
attendance  upon  divine  service,  almost  emptied 
the  various  churches  of  w^orshipers;  all  that  the 
minister  of  the  gospel  could  then  do  w^as  to  visit 
his  flock  as  often  as  time  and  opportunity  per- 
mitted, laboring  only  in  hope  of  the  dawn  of  a 
better  day,  and  the  speedy  return  of  peace  and 
prosperity,  ^o  congregations  could  think  of 
making  improvements  on  their  churches  and 
schools,  or  of  building  new  houses  of  worship; 
it  was  even  more  than  could  be  accomplished  to 
hold  their  own,  and  "to  streno^then  the  thina:s 
which  remained,  that  were  ready  to  die."  The 
close  of  tlie  war  witnessed  churches  in  ruins,  con- 
gregations dispersed;  some  of  them  so  effectually 
died  out  that  they  were  never  again  resuscitated, 
whilst  others  were  so  w^eakened  and  had  orrown 
so  indifferent,  that  with  the  greatest  difficulty  they 
were  revived  into  a  new  thous^h  liniJ:erino'  life. 
This  was  particularly  the  case  w^ith  the  Lutheran 


272  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Church  in  the  Carolinas;  it  had  suffered  much  in 
the  days  of  its  early  planting,  but  it  suffered  still 
more  during  the  dark  [)eriod  of  the  Kevolutionary 
War,  and  approached  very  near  to  becoming  en- 
tirely extinct. 

The  ministers  themselves  were  often  harassed, 
persecuted,  and  at  times  in  danger  of  their  lives. 
Rev.  Christian  Streitt,  pastor  of  St.  John's  Lu- 
theran Church,  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  was 
taken  prisoner  by  the  British  soldiers,  and  was 
never  again  permitted  to  return,  but  found  a  field 
of  labor  elsewhere  at  the  close  of  the  \var.  "Eev. 
Mr.  Martin,  many  of  whose  descendants  are  still 
living,  on  his  refusal  to  pray  for  the  king,  was 
driven  from  his  church,  and  his  property  was  con- 
fiscated. He  was  for  a  time  placed  under  arrest, 
and  was  al'terwards  compelled  to  leave  the  city, 
to  which  he  did  not  return  until  the  close  of  the 
war."  *'His  house,"  writes  his  great-grand- 
daughter, *' had  twice,  during  the  Revolutionary 
War,  been  burned  by  our  own  troops,  fearing  that 
the  dwelling  might  furnish  a  cover  to  the  enemy's 
approach."  This  was  doubtless  done  before  the 
British  succeeded  in  occupying  the  city.  Rev. 
Nussmann  in  i^orth  Carolina  fared  no  better, 
although  no  regular  army  passed  through  the 
country  where  he  resided;  but  he  was  pursued 
by  Tories,  who  threatened  to  take  his  life.  Aged 
and  defenceless  as  he  was,  he  could  do  nothing 
better  than  to  seek  refuge  in  fleeing  to  a  retreat 
near  his  home,  where  he  was  hid  from  their  view, 
and  thus  escaped.     During  all   this  dark   period 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  273 

of  time  the  German  ministers  struggled  single- 
handed  arid  alone,  but  all  were  as  faithful  in  the 
discharge  of  their  duties,  as  the  times  and  circum- 
stances would  permit.  God  also  wonderfully  pre- 
served their  lives,  for  it  is  not  positivel}'  known 
that  a  single  Lutheran  minister  in  the  Carolinas 
died  during  the  war.  Rev.  J.  G.  Friederichs  passed 
from  the  stage  of  action  some  time  shortly  pre- 
vious to,  or  during  the  Revolution,  but  it  is  not 
certainly  known  when  God  took  liim  to  his  rest; 
and  Rev.  L.  Hochheimer's  name  also  disappears 
from  the  records  of  that  period. 

Another  sad  effect  of  the  war  upon  the  churches 
in  the  Carolinas  was  the  impossibility  of  having 
any  correspondence  with  the  parent  Church  in 
Europe,  owing  to  the  interruption  of  all  commei'- 
cial  intercourse  with  foreign  nations.  This  de- 
prived the  congregations  of  the  sympathy  and  aid 
of  their  brethren  in  the  Fatherland,  and  termi- 
nated the  supply  of  ministers,  books  and  dona- 
tions in  money  for  the  good  of  the  Church  in 
these  two  Provinces  as  long  as  the  war  lasted.  In 
short,  the  removals,  the  deaths,  the  changes  and 
the  sufferings  that  were  caused  by  this  war  of 
England  with  her  colonies  in  America  can  never 
be  fully  described,  and  will  never  be  known,  in 
all  their  details,  by  any  human  being  this  side  of 
eternity. 


274  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 


CHAPTER  III. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  LUTHERAN  CHURCH  IN  THE  CARO- 
LINAS  FROM  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE  REVOLUTIONARY 
WAR,  A.D.  1783,  TO  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE 
SYNOD  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA,  A.D.  1803,  EMBRAC- 
ING A  PERIOD  OF  TWENTY  YEARS. 

Section  1.  State  of  the  German  Colonies  and  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  at  the  Close  of  the  Revolution. 

The  conflict  of  arms  had  ceased;  the  smoke 
and  din  of  battle  were  seen  and  heard  no  more; 
peace  again  spread  its  benign  influence  over  our 
long- afflicted  country;  the  independence  of  the 
American  Colonies  was  at  last  achieved — acknowl- 
edged even  by  England,  and  civil  and  religious 
liberty  was  the  well-earned  reward  of  the  people, 
who  had  patiently  struggled  and  suftered  for  eight 
long  years.  Prosperity  again  commenced  to 
dawn  upon  the  land,  when  all  the  energies  of  the 
people  were  directed  to  the  development  of  its 
resources,  and  industry  and  economy  soon  re- 
stored the  healthy  financial  condition  of  its  in- 
habitants. 

But  there  is  another  side  to  that  picture  which 
is  generally  overlooked.     War  had  left  its  deep 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  275 

traces  of  evil  upon  the  virtues  and  morals  of  the 
people,  who  had  become  more  or  less  degenerated 
by  the  evil  influences  which  a  long  war  and  a 
change  of  government  generally  exert  upon  man- 
kind. The  German  people,  especially  in  the 
rural  districts,  were  not  so  greatly  affected  by 
these  influences  of  the  war  as  were  others,  owing 
to  their  isolated  condition  on  account  of  lan- 
guage, and  their  temperate  and  industrious  habits 
kept  them  more  closely  confined  to  their  homes; 
nevertheless,  a  general  indifference  to  all  matters 
of  religion  prevailed  almost  everywhere,  for  the 
people  were  no  longer  hungry  for  the  bread  of 
life,  but  regarded  the  acquisition  of  w^ealth,  or  the 
repair  of  their  former  condition  of  competency,  as 
of  primary  importance. 

Old  landmarks  of  government  had  been  entirely 
overthrown,  and  the  people  were  for  five  years 
politically  unsettled  in  mind,  ere  a  solid  and  stable 
government  was  formed  and  established.  State 
ofovernments  existed,  without  which  the  whole 
land  would  have  been  subjected  to  all  the  terrors 
of  anarchy;  but  one  can  easily  imagine  how  little 
restraint  these  governments  could  enforce,  and 
what  protection  they  could  warrant,  as  long  as 
every  political  arrangement  was  regarded  as 
merely  provisional. 

Foreign  immigration,  particularly  into  the 
Southern  States,  was,  for  a  time,  almost  entirely 
arrested. 

But  the  worst  consequences  of  the  success  of 
the  Revolutionary  War  were  the  almost  deifica- 


276  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

tioii  of  Liberty  and  the  rapid  rise  of  infidelity, 
rationalism  and  religious  indifference.  A  propli- 
ecy  was  made  by  one  of  the  wisest  statesmen  of 
that  time  or  shortly  afterwards,  that  in  fifty  years 
there  would  not  a  single  copy  of  the  Bible  be 
found  in  this  country.  'Nov  was  the  influence  of 
the  success  of  the  Revolution  confined  to  America. 
France  soon  became  dissatisfied  witli  its  monarch- 
ical government,  and  ran  wild  in  its  demands  for 
libert3\  It  had  its  desire,  but  its  reign  of  terror, 
whicfi  followed  close  upon  the  heels  of  American 
independence,  became  warning  enough  to  all,  that 
liberty,  however  excellent  it  is,  when  properly  re- 
strained by  tlie  virtue  of  its  possessors  and  whole- 
some laws,  becomes  a  dangerous  plaything  in  the 
hands  of  incompetent,  selfish  and  wricked  men. 
How  significant  is  the  cry  of  one  of  the  victims 
under  the  guillotine:  *'0  Libert}^  Liberty,  how 
many  crimes  are  committed  in  thy  name !" 

With  this  period  we  may  also  date  the  beginning 
of  rationalism  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America; 
old  landmarks  of  the  Lutheran  faith  were  set  aside, 
or  formally  confessed  with  a  mental  reservation, 
church  discipline  was  not  generally,  properly  and 
impartially  enforced,  ancient  church  usages  were 
abandoned;  our  Church,  thus  despoiled  of  her 
glory  and  strength,  was  made  to  correspond  with 
the  spirit  of  American  liberty,  and  to  assimilate 
itself  to  other  denominations,  and  an  anxious  seek- 
ing after  temporal  advantage  became  manifest 
even  among  some  of  those,  who  were  the  acknowl- 
edged shepherds  of  the  flock. 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  277 

The  spirit  of  the  age  was  skeptical,  selfish,  and 
prone  to  deify  a  virtue  and  morality  entirely 
disconnected  from  the  religion  of  our  Savior. 
Priestcraft,  under  which  reproachful  term  the 
gospel  ministry  of  all  denominations  was  under- 
stood, was  so  generally  dreaded  and  so  frequently 
denounced,  that  it  is  a  matter  of  surprise  that 
ministers  of  the  gospel  could  effect  any  good  at 
all.  But  one  extreme  is  usually  followed  by 
another,  and  generally  by  its  opposite.  The  re- 
vival of  1800,  which  swept  over  the  entire  land, 
no  doubt  accomplished  good  in  checking  the  grow- 
ing evil  of  infidelity  and  religious  unconcern,  for 
it  taught  men  that  there  is  a  future  retribution; 
but  its  spirit  was  legal,  and  it  became. the  parent 
of  much  fanaticism  and  Pharisaism,  establishing 
an  ethical  kind  of  religion,  which  cut  oft'  some  of 
the  most  tender  cords  of  faith  and  love,  that  draw 
the  human  heart  near  to  the  Savior.  An  emo- 
tional religion  became  prevalent ;  religious  expe- 
rience exchanged  places  with  Christ,  and  a  subjec- 
tive faith  was  substituted  for  the  objective;  but 
as  a  more  extended  account  of  this  great  revival 
will  be  furnished  in  another  section  of  this  chapter, 
it  is  unnecessary  to  enlarge  here. 

The  Lutheran  ministers  in  the  Carolinas,  who 
survived  all  the  vicissitudes  of  the  Revolutionary 
War,  as  far  as  can  be  ascertained,  were  Revs.  Kuss- 
niann  and  Arndt  in  N^ortli  Carolina,  and  Revs. 
Martin  and  Dascr  in  South  Carolina;  concerning 
Revs.  Friederichs  and  Hochheimer  nothing  is 
known  positively;  their  names  do  not  occur  in  any 


278  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  the  extant  records  oftliat  period;  what  became 
of  them,  and  when  they  died,  must  now  remain, 
as  it  is  feared,  a  matter  of  mere  conjecture.  Eev. 
Theiis,  the  German  Eeformed  minister  in  South 
Carolina,  still  lived,  and  continued  to  labor  faith- 
fully in  his  Master's  vineyard.  The  names  of  four 
other  German  ministers  in  South  Carolina  appear 
in  view  four  or  five  years  later,  but  it  is  probable 
that  they  began  to  labor  in  that  field  only  after 
peace  was  restored. 


Section  2.  Reorganization  of  Ecclesiastical  affairs  in 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas, 

On  the  26th  of  March,  1784,  St.  John's  Lutheran 
Church  in  Charleston,  upon  the  application  of  its 
members,  made  in  1783,  obtained  a  charter  of 
incorporation,  under  the  changed  name  and  title 
of"  The  Lutheran  Church  of  German  Protestants," 
from  the  State  legislature,  which  then  held  its 
sessions  in  Charleston.  This  appears  to  have  been 
the  first  effort  that  was  made  at  reorganization  of 
ecclesiastical  affairs  in  the  Lutheran  Church  under 
the  new  form  of  civil  government  in  the  Carolinas. 

liev.  Frederick  Daser  was  still  the  pastor,  and 
continued  in  charge  of  that  congregation  until 
July,  1786;  there  is  undoubted  testimony  on  that 
point,  firstly,  from  the  extract  of  the  records  of 
the  church-book,  published  by  Mr.  Jacob  F.  Schir- 
mer,  who  states:  "We  find  the  name  of  Mr.  F. 
Daser  as  pastor  up  to  July,  1786,  when  he  resigned 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  279 

his  office;"  secondl^^jfrom  the  Helmstaedt  Reports, 
in  which  the  aiitlior  mentions  having  received  a 
letter  from  Rev.  Daser,  and  states :  ''  We  learn 
from  his  letter  of  the  20th  of  June,  1787,  that  he 
has  now  left  Charleston  since  August,  1786,  and 
has  moved  to  another  congregation,  composed  of 
English  and  German  people,  in  Orangeburg  Dis- 
trict, seventy  miles  further  inland." 

Rev.  John  Nicholas  Martin  was  again  recalled, 
and  became  the  pastor  of  this  church  for  the  third 
time,  but  labored  only  one  year,  until  the  new 
minister  from  Germany  arrived,  when,  on  account 
of  the  infirmities  of  age,  he  withdrew  from  the 
active  duties  of  the  ministry.  The  family  memoir, 
furnished  by  one  of  his  descendants,  states:  "Al- 
though aged,  and  having  lost  his  former  physical 
vigor,  his  congregation  still  clung  to  him  with 
warm  affection.  They  urged  him  in  1783  (1786) 
to  resume  his  pastoral  relations,  until  a  stated 
minister  could  be  procured  from  Germany.  Upon 
the  arrival  of  his  successor,  Rev.  John  C.  Faber, 
he  w^as  released  from  further  service,  with  a  vote 
of  thanks  from  the  church  for  the  fidelity  whli 
which  he  had  ministered  to  their  spiritual  interests. 
He  lived  several  years,  after  his  withdrawal  from 
the  active  duties  of  the  ministry,  on  the  little  farm 
with  wiiich  there  were  so  many  associations  con- 
nected." This  farm  was  situated  about  a  mile 
from  Charleston,  on  which  the  revolutionary  inci- 
dents occurred,  which  w^ere  noticed  in  one  of  the 
preceding  sections. 

Concerning  the  other  Lutheran  congregations 


280  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

in  the  interior  of  South  Carolina,  very  little  is 
known  until  1787,  excepting  that  the  Orangeburg 
District  charge  was  fortunate  enough  to  have 
received  Rev.  F.  Daser  for  their  pastor  in  August, 
1786,  and  who,  doubtless,  remained  there  to  the 
close  of  his  life. 

In  Rev.  A.  JSTussmann's  principal  congregation, 
St.  John's,  Mecklenburg  (Cabarrus)  County,  K.  C, 
the  want  of  a  better  house  of  worship  was  felt  after 
the  war,  when  the  congregation  had  again  become 
thoroughly  organized.  On  the  6th  of  [N'ovember, 
1784,  a  beginning  was  made  ''for  the  purpose  of 
rebuilding  St.  John's  Church."  It  was  resolved 
to  erect  the  new  church  on  the  same  site  where 
the  old  one  stood,  in  the  inclosure  of  the  present 
graveyard,  near  the  upper  part  of  it.  The  sub- 
scription list,  taken  in  the  currency  of  English 
nioney,  and  ranging  from  ten  pounds  to  three 
shillings,  is  prefaced  by  the  following  pious  wish  : 
"  May  the  good  God  help  us,  so  that  our  under- 
taking may  succeed  well  in  peace  and  unanimity, 
and  that  every  man  may  do  his  part  as  he  would 
wish  others  to  do  towards  himself."  The  whole 
subscription  amounted  to  about  <£172i. 

The  church  edifice  was  completed  the  following 
year,  and  was  solemnly  dedicated  to  the  service  of 
the  triune  God  on  the  fourth  of  July,  1785,  but 
with  what  ceremonies  is  not  stated.  Soon  after 
another  subscription  was  taken,  for  the  purpose  of 
purchasing  a  large  gilt  silver  goblet  from  their 
pastor  for  communion  service,  which  is  still  used 
for  the  same  purpose. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  281 

In  the  Organ  and  Salisbury  Churches  matters 
remained  unimproved,  and  those  congregations 
became  vacant  soon  after  the  restoration  of  peace, 
bj  the  removal  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Arndt  to  Lincoln 
County,  where  a  new  and  promising  field  awaited 
him,  and  where  he  accomplished  much  good. 
Concerning  the  other  German  Lutheran  settle- 
ments in  N'orth  Carolina  nothing  much  can  be 
said,  inasmuch  as  they  never  enjoyed  the  regular 
services  of  their  own  pastor  until  1788,  but  were 
visited  by  Revs.  Nussmann  and  Arndt  as  frequently 
as  the  attendance  upon  the  wants  of  their  own 
regular  congregations  would  permit  them. 

Section  3.  Arrival  of  Rev.  Jokn  Charles  Faber — Re- 
union of  the  North  Carolina  Churches  with  the 
Parent  Church  in  Germany — The  North  Caro- 
lina Catechism.,  published  by  Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen, 
and  Rev.  Daser's  Report  to  the  Helmstaedt  Fa- 
thers. 

In  the  year  1787,  the  Rev.  John  Charles  Faber, 
having  received  and  accepted  a  call  from  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina, 
**  arrived  froiu  Germany  and  took  charge  of  the 
church."  He  continued  to  labor  there  for  thirteen 
years,  when,  during  the  year  1800,  his  health  failed 
him,  and  he  resigned  bis  office  as  pastor  of  that  con- 
gregation. "The  Rev.  Mr.  Pogson,"  an  Episcopal 
clergyman,  "  ofiiciated  on  Sundays  for  a  short  time, 
and  on  his  retiring  Mr.  Faber  consented  to  serve 
the  church  as  far  as  his  strength  would  allow." 

24 


282  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

According  to  the  testimony  of  Rev.  Dr.  Velt- 
husen,  in  his  preface  to  the  North  Carolina  Cate- 
chism, Rev.  J.  C.  Faber  must  have  labored  with 
great  acceptance  and  success  in  Charleston,  induc- 
ing man3^  of  the  Germans  of  other  religious  per- 
suasions to  unite  with  the  Lutherans  in  building 
up  their  church.  Dr.  V.  says,  "This  congrega- 
tion may  be  looked  upon  as  an  example  of  Chris- 
tian harmony,  for  it  is  composed  of  a  union  of 
Lutherans,  German  Reformed  and  Catholics,  all 
of  whom  live,  according  to  the  testimony  of  their 
pastor,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Faber,  very  peaceably  toge- 
ther, although  they  are  educated  in  different  prin- 
ciples of  religion.  They  visit  the  house  of  God 
faithful!}',  and  contribute  equally  for  the  support 
of  divine  worship." 

A  strong  effort  was  made  at  this  time  by  Rev. 
IlTussmann  to  place  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North 
Carolina  once  more  in  connection  with  the  parent 
Church  in  Germany,  and  this  time  he  accomplished 
his  purpose.  His  object  was  threefold:  his  con- 
gregation, St.  John's,  had  money  on  deposit  in 
Europe,  which  had  been  collected  for  its  benefit 
previous  to  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolutionary 
War,  and  the  amount,  £90  sterling,  was  certainly 
worth  the  attempt  to  secure  for  the  benefit  of 
that  congregation;  besides,  devotional  books  and 
German  school-books  were  greatly  needed  everj-- 
where,  and,  in  order  to  obtain  a  supply  of  them, 
application  was  made  to  the  Mission  Society  at 
Helmstaedt,  Duchy  of  Brunswick,  to  send  books 
in  exchange  for  the  money  that  was  coming  to 


IN  NORTH   AND  SOUTH  CAROLINA,  2SB 

tiiiit  church,  which  could  then  be  sold  among  the 
Germans  in  Korth  Carolina,  and  more  than  the 
same  amount  of  money  realized  from  their  sale. 
But  the  greatest  necessity  of  all  was  a  supply  of 
German  Lutheran  ministers;  accordingly,  as  is 
stated  in  Eev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch's  journal,  a  call  for 
several  Lutheran  ministers  to  labor  in  North  Caro- 
lina was  sent  by  Rev.  Kussmann  to  Rev.  Dr.  Velt- 
husen,  in  Helmstaedt,  Germany,  and  by  this 
means  Rev.  K.  endeavored  to  preserve  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  this  State  from  becoming  entirely 
extinct,  for  in  all  human  probability  this  would 
have  been  eventually  its  fate,  if  help,  in  the  supply 
of  ministers,  had  been  delayed  several  years  longer, 
when  Revs.  IS'ussmann  and  Arndt  were  called  to 
their  long  rest. 

For  the  purpose  of  taking  these  matters  into 
consideration,  particularly  those  bearing  upon  the 
welfare  of  St.  John's  Church,  a  meeting  of  the 
church-council  was  called  on  the  30th  of  Septem- 
ber, 1787,  which  convened  at  the  pastor's  house, 
and  the  following  business  was  transacted: 

As  before  stated,  many  charitable  persons  in 
Europe  had  safely  deposited  a  considerable  amount 
of  money  in  London,  some  time  before  the  Revo- 
lution, for  the  benefit  of  "the  congregation  at 
Dutch  Buffalo  Creek,  Mecklenburg  County," 
which  had  been  appropriated  in  part  for  the  wel- 
fare of  that  church,  and  of  which  ^90,  sterling, 
were  still  remaining  on  deposit  in  that  city,  and 
which,  it  was  feared,  this  congregation  had  for- 


284  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

felted,  on  account  of  the  action  of  its  members  in 
the  Revolution  ;  it  was,  therefore, 

'■'■  Resolved,  That  if  those  benefactors  would  still 
have  the  kindness  to  permit  this  amount  to  be  ap- 
propriated to  the  welfare  of  this  congregation,  as 
was  at  first  intended,  that  the  money  should  always 
be  considered  as  a  fund  belonging  solely  to  the 
church. 

''Resolved,  That  from  the  interest  of  this  fund 
the  yearly  salary  of  the  pastor  shall  be  supple- 
mented. 

''Resolved,  That  no  part  of  the  principal  shall 
be  touched  without  the  consent  of  the  donors." 

This  fund  had  accumulated  in  1843  to  fifteen 
hundred  dollars,  and  was  then  all  consumed,  con- 
trary to  this  resolution,  in  erecting  the  present 
church  edifice,  in  which  the  members  of  St.  John's 
Church  now  worship. 

"Resolved,  That  this  amount  of  funds  shall  not 
be  sent  in  money,  but,  as  the  congregation  is  de- 
sirous of  obtaining  books,  especially  those  pub- 
lished by  those  five  learned  philanthropists  in 
Helmstaedt,  Revs.  Abbots  Velthnsen  and  Henke, 
and  the  Professors  Crell,  Klligel  and  Bruns,  for 
the  benefit  of  the  Christian  religion  in  America; 
it  is  ordered  that  a  part  be  printed  by  St.  Michael's 
Day,  and  the  other  part  by  next  Easter  Day,  and 
it  is  requested  that  the  first  four  numbers  be  pur- 
chased, and  strongly  but  not  expensively  bound, 
and  then  be  sent  over  to  us. 

"Resolved,  That  the  whole  Society,  or  a  part  of 
the  members  by  order  of  the  Society,  be  permitted 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  285 

to  appropriate  the  whole  or  a  part  of  this  money 
in  the  purchase  of  those  expected  books,  which 
are  to  be  sent  to  us. 

'■^  Eesolced,  That  these  resolutions  be  inscribed 
in  the  church-book. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  chest,  in  which  these  books 
are  to  be  sent,  shall  be  directed  M.  C.  D.  B.  C," 
supposed  to  signify  Mecklenburg  County,  Dutch 
Bufialo  Creek. 

This  abstract  of  the  proceedings  of  St.  John's 
church  council,  held  at  the  time  and  phice  above- 
mentioned,  is  taken  from  the  old  church-book, 
still  extant  and  written  in  the  German  lano^uao-e. 

The  efforts  of  Eev.  Nussmann  and  his  congre- 
gation were  crowned  with  success;  the  money  was 
secured,  the  needed  books  were  sent,  and  in  com- 
pliance with  the  request  of  Rev.  Nussmann,  a  sec- 
ond edition  of  one  of  those  books,  named  at  iirst 
"The  Helmstaedt  Catechism,"  was  published,  and 
received  the  title  *' North  Carolina  Catechism."  A 
copy  of  its  title-page  is  inserted  here  in  its  original 
language,  for  the  benefit  of  all  those  who  under- 
stand the  German : 

"Kordcarolinischer  Katechismus,  oder  Christ- 
licher  Religionsunterricht  nach  Einleitung  der 
heiligen  Schrift,  entworfen  von  Johann  Caspar 
Velthusen,  Doctor  und  ordentlichem  Lehrer  der 
Theologie,  erstem  Prediger  in  Helmstaedt,  und 
General  Superintend;  auch  Abte  des  Klosters 
Marienthal." 

It  is  a  book  containing  254  pages,  published  in 
1788,  in  the  city  of  Leipzig,  by  Siegfried  Lebrecht 


286  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Crusius,  and  also  incloses  Luther's  smaller  cate- 
chism in  its  pages.  It  informs  us  of  the  degree 
of  interest  which  the  Church  in  the  Fatherland 
took  in  our  ecclesiastical  affairs  in  this  section  of 
our  country.  Its  chief  importance  at  this  time  is 
its  liistorical  value,  giving  us  an  insight  in  the 
manner  in  which  the  practical  affairs  of  our 
churches  in  the  Carolinas  were  conducted  at  the 
time  of  its  publication.  This  is  furnished  us  in 
its  preface,  in  which  Dr.  Velthusen  reports  some 
interesting  facts  concerning  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  North  Carolina  and  Cliarleston,  informing  us 
of  the  departure  of  Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch  (Stork) 
from  Ilelmstaedt  to  his  future  field  of  labor  in 
I^ortli  Carolina. 

The  pretace  to  this  "North  Carolina  Catechism" 
reads  as  follows :  "  This  second  edition  corresponds 
verbatim  with  the  first,  which  I  then  denominated 
the  Ilelmstaedt  Catechism,  because  it  is  likewise 
necessary  for  the  use  of  the  Catechetical  Institute 
of  this  place. 

"In  the  meantime  two  very  strong  congrega- 
tions in  North  Carolina  have  most  i'eelijigly  de- 
clared themselves  willing  to  accept  with  gladness 
the  preachers  which  v/e  expect  to  send  out  to  them. 
Eev.  Mr.  Storch  is  already  upon  the  sea  on  his  way 
thither." 

"We  have  also  the  assurance  from  other  por- 
tions of  America,  that  the  choice  of  our  books  of 
instruction  are  suitable  to  their  wants.  Besides, 
various  of  these  books  have  also  been  introduced 
in  Charleston,  by  the  approval  and  support  of  the 


IN   NOKTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  287 

congregation,  for  the  instruction  of  their  youth." 
(Here  follows  the  description  of  the  condition  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston,  already  quoted 
on  another  page.)  "I  have,  therefore,  given  the 
above  title  to  this  Catechism  from  motives  of  love 
and  regard  to  my  friend,  Rev.  !N"ussmann,  as  such 
has  been  his  desire  from  the  beginning.  May 
God  bless  the  use  of  this  book,  my  dear  brethren, 
for  your  and  your  children's  everlasting  salvation. 
"Helmstaedt,  May  1st,  1788." 

From  one  of  the  Helmstaedt  Reports  we  are 
informed  how  these  books  and  letters  intended 
for  Rev.  l!^ussmann  Avere  sent  to  him.  Dr.  Yelt- 
husen  says:  "We  had  formerly  sent  everything 
which  was  intended  to  reach  Rev.  Mr.  ]N'ussmann, 
as  we  were  requested,  to  the  address  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Daser,  but  who  has  now  left  Charleston,  and  has 
moved  to  Orangeburg  District,  where  he  must 
await  such  opportunities  as  the  country  market- 
w^agons  afford,  before  Rev.  Nussmann  could  re- 
ceive our  letters,  sent  over  through  the  kindness 
of  friends  in  London,  Amsterdam,  Copenhagen, 
Hamburg,  Altona  and  Bremen." 

Rev.  Mr.  Daser  also  mentions  a  fact  in  his  letter, 
which  is  worthy  of  notice,  and  assists  us  in  obtain- 
ing an  insight  into  the  condition  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  the  interior  of  South  Carolina  at  that 
time. 

Dr.  Velthusen  states:  "Rev.  Mr.  Daser  men- 
tions two  congregations  in  South  Carolina  that 
are  in  search  of  a  pastor,  but  the  assurances  were 
not  sufficiently  distinct  and  satisfactory  to  propose 


288  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

this  call  to  one,  whose  welfare  at  the  present  time 
is  even  dearer  to  us  than  oar  own,  or  even  to 
permit  any  one  to  make  a  journej'  upon  such  an 
uncertaint}^;  for  we  have  determined  upon  the 
principle,  never  to  send  any  one  as  a  preacher  to 
America,  except  under  such  circumstances  which 
would  induce  each  one  of  us  cheerfully  to  make 
this  journey  ourselves,  if  our  individual  circum- 
stances would  permit,  in  dependence  upon  God 
and  upon  the  good  cause;  for  we  despise,  with  all 
our  hearts,  every  uncalled-for  emigration  from  the 
Fatherland,  and  all  wandering  about  in  the  world 
as  adventurers." 

These  two  vacant  churches  in  South  Carolina 
must  have  been  the  one  in  Barnwell  District,  and 
Salem  Church  at  Sandy  Run,  Lexington  District, 
so  supposed  from  the  fact  that  all  the  other  charges 
in  that  State  appear  to  have  been  supplied  with 
pastors  that  same  year,  when  the  Corpus  Evan- 
gelicum  was  organized;  and  also,  that  E.ev.  Daser, 
residing  in  Orangeburg  District  at  the  time  he 
wrote,  was  nearest  to  these  two  congregations,  and 
was  doubtless  specially  interested  in  their  welfare. 

Section  ^.  The  Corpus  Evangelicuyn^  or  Unio  Eccle- 
siastica  in  South  Carolina^  and  the  Ordination 
of  Rev.  J.  G.  Bamberg. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  that  period  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas, 
when  the  first  attempt  was  made,  in  connection 
with  the  German  Reformed  ministers,  to  organize 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  289 

some  kind  of  ecclesiastical  body,  tliat  should  have 
the  supervision  of  all  the  German  churches  in  the 
interior  of  the  State  of  South  Carolina. 

This  body  was  organized  in  Zion's  Church,  Lex- 
ington District  (County),  November  13th,  1787, 
and  consisted  of  Lutheran  and  German  Reformed 
ministers,  together  with  lay  deputies  from  the 
churches  belonging  to  both  denominations.  It 
had  the  double  name  of  Corpus  Evangelicum  and 
Unio  Ecclesiastica,  doubtless  so  given  with  the 
view  that  neither  denomination  could  have  occa- 
sion to  object  to  the  title  and  to  its  undenomina- 
tional character.  Its  principal  object  was  to  make 
special  arrangement  for  the  proper  incorporation 
of  all  the  German  churches  by  legislative  enact- 
ment, which  were  located  in  the  interior  of  the 
State;  the  Lutheran  church  in  the  cit3M:)f  Charles- 
ton having  already  secured  its  charter  of  incorpo- 
ration. The  ordination  of  a  candidate  to  the  office 
of  the  ministry  indicated  that  the  performance  of 
this  duty  seemed  to  be  also  one  of  its  objects;  and 
the  general  oversiglit  and  welfare  of  all  the  churches 
in  its  connection,  as  was  manifested  by  the  pres- 
ence of  lay  delegates,  claimed  a  large  share  of  the 
attention  of  that  body. 

The  Lutheran  congregation  in  Charleston  never 
connected  itself  with  that  body;  neither  did  the 
two  Lutheran  ministers.  Revs.  Faber  and  Martin, 
w4io  resided  there;  but  for  what  reason  is  not 
stated. 

The  Corpus  Evangelicum  was  short-lived,  as 
might  have  been  expected,  and  as  all  such  mixed 

25 


290  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ecclesiastical  bodies  must  necessarily  be.  A  uiiioii 
of  denominations  cannot  be  otherwise  than  false, 
where  the  united  parties  are  not  agreed  either  in 
doctrine  or  practice,  for  each  party  feels  that  it  is 
not  laboring  specially  for  the  upbuilding  of  its 
own  denomination,  and  thus  zeal  and  energy  are 
paralyzed,  and  the  heart  grows  weak.  Such  a 
union  becomes  the  parent  of  indiiferentism. 

It  is  a  Utopian  dream  ever  to  expect  a  union 
of  all  orthodox  Christian  denominations  in  this 
world,  and  every  attempt  to  effect  a  union  of  this 
kind  must  finally  become  inoperative.  Royal 
edicts,  as  in  Prussia,  may  for  a  long  time  keep 
two  or  more  denominations  in  an  organized  eccle- 
siastical connection,  and  galvanize  such  a  union 
into  a  certain  kind  of  life;  but  no  sooner  are  such 
edicts  revoked,  than  the  former  state  of  things  is 
restored,  with,  perhaps,  the  forming  of  a  third 
denomination  where  once  but  two  existed,  thus 
making  the  division  still  greater. 

It  is  admitted  that  this  is  taking  but  a  philo- 
sophical view  of  the  case.  The  question,  Is  it 
right  in  the  sight  of  God?  is  quite  another  matter, 
which  need  not  now  be  discussed,  as  we  have  at 
present  to  deal  only  with  historical  facts.  It  is 
well  known  that  such  an  ecclesiastical  union  was 
formed  in  South  Carolina — an  account  of  wjiich 
may  be  found  in  Kev.  Dr.  Ilazelius'  History  of 
the  American  Lutheran  Church,  pp.  118-121, 
which,  however,  is  not  here  inserted,  because  the 
constitution  and  report  of  the  proceedings  of  that 
body  are  preferred,  as  translated  by  Dr.  Ilazelius, 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  291 

and  inscribed  in  the  church  book  of  St.  Peter's 
congregation,  near  Lexington  Court  House,  South 
CaroUna,  in  whicli  church-book  the  orginal  Ger- 
man copy  was  found. 


Constitution  of  the  Corpus  Evangelicum. 

Whereas  our  legislature,  in  virtue  of  a  petition, 
has  incorporated  the  major  part  of  our  Evangeli- 
cal Zion  in  this  free  State,  consisting  of  fifteen 
congregations,  as  a  lawful  society,  with  full  power 
to  constitute  and  make  such  by-laws,  orders,  and 
regulations  as  they  may  deem  proper  for  the  wel- 
fare of  such  a  society,  and  to  administer  a  salutary 
church  discipline;  therefore,  the  undersigned  met 
on  the  12th  day  of  August,  1788,  in  the  Lutheran 
Salem's  Church,  Sandy  Run,  and  resolved  that 
the  following  articles  shall  be  signed  and  sealed 
by  us,  and  be  kept  inviohibly  by  every  member 
of  the  fifteen  evangelical  churches,  as  a  general 
Church  discipline,  and  that  every  person,  who  is 
desirous  of  becoming  a  member  of  this  Church, 
shall  sign  and  observe  these  regulations,  as  fol- 
lows: 

Article  L  All  the  Christian  congregations,  in- 
corporated as  aforesaid,  shall  form  one  corpus 
evangelicorum  under  the  title:  Unio  Ecclesiastica 
of  the  German  Protestant  Churches  in  the  State 
of  South  Carolina.  Each  and  every  congregation 
is  depending  on  this  corpus^  by  which  all  things 
concerning  Church  and  religion  shall  be  managed 


292  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

and  directed,  and  the  free  course  of  the  gospel  be 
promoted  within  its  bounds. 

Article  IL  Whereas  it  would  be  highly  detri- 
mental, if  members  of  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed 
Confessions,  who  in  this  State  live  near  each 
other,  and  attend  the  same  churches,  should  be 
separated,  therefore  we  have  agreed  to  this  eccle- 
siastical union,  by  which,  however,  it  is  not  to  be 
understood  that  any  member  of  either  confession 
should  forsake  his  confession,  but  that  both  Lu- 
theran and  Reformed,  who  are  members  of  one 
or  the  other  incorporated  churches,  and  who  have 
hitherto  united  in  the  attendance  on  worship,  shall 
continue  to  enjoy  the  same  rights  and  privileges, 
without  the  least  reproaches  in  consequence  of 
their  respective  confessions. 

Article  IIL  Each  of  the  united  evangelical 
congregations  agrees  herewith,  in  accordance  to 
the  design  expressed  in  their  petition  to  the  legis- 
lature, to  establish  and  preserve  among  them  a 
Directory  of  their  churches  as  long  as  a  majority 
of  the  fifteen  churches  agree  to  the  same,  which 
Directory  shall  consist  of  the  ministers  of  said  con- 
gregations and  two  delegates,  suitable  lay-members 
of  each  of  these  churches.  Under  the  general 
superintendence  of  this  Directory  all  affairs  re- 
lating to  churches  shall  be  judged  and  regulated; 
as  for  instance,  the  reception  and  dismission  of 
preachers,  their  election,  examination,  ordination, 
and  induction,  the  establishment  and  regulation 
of  churches  and  schools,  where  there  are  none  at 
present,  the  improvement  of  such  as  are  in  exist- 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  293 

ence,  the  manner  of  Divine  service,  so  that  uni- 
formity mav  exist  in  this  matter,  the  collections  in 
churches,  and  the  proposition  in  what  manner  a 
fund  may  he  collected  gradually  for  several  neces- 
sary expenses,  and,  in  general,  whatever  may  be 
of  importance  for  the  furtherance  and  welfare  of 
the  whole  body,  as  w^ell  as  of  each  individual 
church. 

~  Article  TV.  The  officers  of  this  Ecclesiastical 
Directory  consist  of  a  president,  chosen  from  the 
ministers,  a  church  council,  selected  from  the 
deputies  of  the  respective  congregations,  a  secre- 
tary, and  a  w^arden;  which  officers  are  to  be 
chosen  yearly,  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  Jan- 
uary, by  the  plurality  of  the  votes  of  the  whole 
Directory;  and  the  place  of  meeting  may  be 
changed,  provided  it  is  a  convenient  and  central 
situation. 

Article  Y.  Whenever  a  member  of  these  in- 
corporated churches  should  be  cited  before  this 
Directory,  such  member  promises  to  appear  before 
the  same,  unless  prevented  by  some  extraordinary 
hindrance;  and  any  member  chosen  to  till  an 
office  in  the  Directory  engages  to  accept  the  office 
and  to  perform  its  duties,  unless  very  special  cir- 
cumstances should  prevent  him  from  so  doing. 

Article  YI.  Every  congregation  is  to  reply  in 
writing  to  the  Directory,  and  to  give  an  account 
of  the  state  of  their  church.  In  all  cases  of  ira-  < 
portance  seek  advice  from  the  Directory;  but 
each  incorporate  church  elects  yearly  on  Easter 
Monday  the  necessary  church  officers,  viz. :  two 


294  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

elders,  four  wardens,  a  secretary,  and  a  cliurch 
treasurer.  The  officers  of  the  last  year  are  to 
give  an  account  of  the  state  of  the  church  prop- 
erty to  tlie  newly-elected  officers,  and  deliver  to 
them  all  and  every  part  thereof.  And  it  is  here- 
with agreed  that  all  the  church  officers  shall  take 
an  oath  before  a  magistrate,  that  they  will  faith- 
fully and  honestly  administer  the  property  of  the 
church. 

Article  VII.  The  Directory  is  to  keep  a  book 
of  record  of  all  its  regulations  and  ordinances. 
But  each  congregation  shall  keep  its  own  minutes 
and  church  register  through  the  medium  of  their 
ministers  and  secretaries,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  the  latter  to  register  all  the  regulations  concern- 
ing the  temporalities  of  the  church  made  by  the 
vestry  and  ministry  concerning  the  same.  The 
books,  which  are  to  be  kept  by  the  minister,  shall 
be  mentioned  below. 

Article  VIII.  Wherever  the  major  part  of  the 
members  of  a  congregation  should  belong  to  the 
Reformed  Church,  such  a  liturgy,  formula,  and 
catechism  are  to  be  used  as  the  Reformed  Church 
in  the  Palatinate  or  Switzerland  make  use  of;  but 
where  the  divine  service  has  hitherto  been  per- 
formed according  to  tlie  ceremonies  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church,  the  Wiirtemberg  or  Halle  formula 
shall  be  adopted.  The  Marburg  Hymnbook,  in 
its  second  edition,  remains  in  use  in  our  churches 
of  both  confessions. 

Article  IX.  Every  congregation  has  the  un- 
doubted right  to  elect,  call,  and  to  approve  of  its 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  295 

own  minister;  but  whenever  a  parish  is  vacant,  it 
shall  be  the  duty  of  its  officers  to  apply  to  the  Direc- 
tory in  this  case,  as  in  all  cases  of  importance,  to 
propose  a  suitable  candidate,  and  being  approved 
bj'  the  congregation,  and  they  promise  to  give  him 
a  support,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Directory  to 
deputize  two  ordained  ministers  to  install  tlie  new 
preacher  in  his  parish. 

Article  X.  Every  congregation  promises  here- 
with, and  obligates  itself,  to  make  up  a  salary  by 
subscription,  according  to  its  ability,  and  regularly 
to  pay  the  same;  likewise  to  treat  its  minister 
with  respect,  and  not  to  dismiss  him  from  its  ser- 
vice without  a  proper  cause.  ^Nevertheless,  the 
minister  shall  have  the  right  and  privilege  to 
accept  a  call  from  any  other  congregation,  if 
Providence  should  so  direct.  Each  congregation, 
likewise,  fixes  the  contingent  fees  of  the  minister 
according  to  their  respective  al)ilities. 

Article  XL  The  preacher,  in  any  of  these  in- 
corporated congregations,  promises  on  his  part, 
and  binds  himself  before  God  and  the  Church,  to 
administer  his  holy  office,  to  adorn  it  bj^  an  unim- 
peachable walk  and  conversation.  In  the  discharge 
of  the  duties  of  his  holy  office,  whether  public  or 
private,  he  shall  ap})ear  in  his  ministerial  dress, 
which  is  to  be  provided  by  the  congregation.  He 
shall  preach  every  Lord's  day  an  evangelical  and 
edifying  sermon,  and  afterwards  catechize  the 
youth,  except  when  baptism,  communion,  or  a 
marriage  is  to  be  celebrated,  or  in  case  that  he 
has  to  visit  the  sick.     He  shall  yearly  keep  a  fast 


296  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

and  praj'er  clay  in  liis  congregation,  preach  a  har- 
vest sermon,  and  celebrate  in  liis  church  the  high 
festivals  of  Enster  Sunday  and  Monday,  Pentecost 
Sunday  and  Monday,  Ascension  Day  and  Christ- 
mas Day,  and  other  festivals  of  the  Christian 
Churcli,  such  as  Good  Friday,  ]^ew  Year,  &c. 
He  likewise  promises  to  continue  his  theological 
studies,  and  not  to  dejjart  from  the  principles  of 
our  holy  religioii,  and  to  warn  his  hearers  against 
the  sects  which  divide  the  Church,  and  to  endeavor 
to  prevent  the  growing  evil.  He  shall  also  ad- 
monish his  household  and  children  to  walk  in  the 
fear  of  God,  and  in  every  respect  is  he  bound  as  a 
faithful  steward  of  God  to  act  conscientiously  in 
his  public  and  private  vocation.  Unless  it  is  abso- 
lutely necessary,  he  shall  not  absent  himself  too 
far  from  his  congregation,  and  shall  submit  to 
every  regulation  which  either  has  been  made  or 
iiuiy  be  made  by  the  Directory. 

He  shall,  at  least  once  every  year,  make  a  state- 
ment to  the  Directory  of  his  parochial  duties, 
according  to  a  formula  which  he  is  to  receive. 
He  shall  frequentl}^  visit  the  schools,  and  seriously 
admonish  the  parents  to  educate  their  children  in 
the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord.  He 
shall  be  diligent  in  exposing,  and  warning  against, 
the  vices  and  immoralities  which  may  creep  or 
prevail  in  congregations.  In  regard  to  marriages, 
and  everything  connected  with  the  same,  he  is  to 
act  with  circumspection,  and  he  shall  endeavor  to 
preserve  good  morals,  peace,  and  harmony,  both 
in  the  Church  and  families. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  297 

Every  quarter  he  shall  call  a  meeting  of  the 
church  officers,  to  counsel  with  them  concerning 
the  temporal  and  spiritual  state  of  the  congrega- 
tion, examine  the  account  of  the  church  treasurer, 
and  keep  an  exact  account  of  these  proceedings  in 
his  own  book,  as  the  secretary  has  to  preserve  a 
similar  account  in  his.  If  hitherto  no  register  of 
baptisms,  communicants, confirmations,  marriages, 
and  deaths  has  been  kept  in  a  congregation,  the 
minister  is  to  make  diligent  search  in  his  congre- 
gation, whether  any  records  of  former  times  may 
be  discovered,  and  if  not,  he  shall  henceforth  keep 
such  a  record,  a  model  of  which  shall  be  sent  to 
them  by  the  president.  Every  minister,  who  is 
cited  to  appear  before  the  Directory  to  answer  to 
any  accusation  which  may  be  brought  against  him, 
is  bound  to  appear  before  the  same,  and  to  submit 
to  the  decision  thereof. 

Article  XII.  A  copy  of  this  act  and  church 
discipline  shall  be  made  and  deposited  in  each  of 
our  united  and  incorporated  congregations;  this 
copy  shall  be  subscribed  and  sealed  by  each  mem- 
ber, and  it  shall  frequently  be  read  to  the  congre- 
gation. Whosoever  desires  to  become  a  member 
of  the  church  or  Directory  has  to  subscribe  and 
seal  this  discipline  before  he  can  be  admitted  to  a 
vote  in  any  election  held  by  the  church. 

Article  XIII.  We  herewith  agree  to  keep  a 
box  in  every  church,  into  which  every  attendant 
on  divine  worship  may  cast  his  contribution,  ac- 
cording to  his  ability  and  good  will.  The  amount 
of  these  contributions  shall   yearly   be   declared 


298  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

before  the  Directory.  This  money  is  to  be  applied 
for  the  purchase  of  baptismal  and  communion  ves- 
sels; ministerial  gowns,  however,  are  to  be  pro- 
vided by  private  collections'in  the  congregation. 

Article  XIV.  We  will  make  application  by 
letter  to  our  brethren  in  the  faith  in  Europe  to 
consider  our  weak  state,  and  especiallj'  to  supply 
ns  with  ministers  and  schoolmasters. 

Article  XV.  As  far  as  it  is  possible  we  will 
aid  the  poor  in  our  congregations. 

Article  XVI.  We  shall  not  interfere  in  cases 
which,  according  to  law,  ought  to  come  before  our 
civil  magistrates,  and  in  all  respects  submit  to  the 
laws  of  our  countr3\ 

Article  XVII.  If  any  person  in  the  congrega- 
tion should  have  a  complaint  against  his  minister, 
he  is  to  make  it  known  to  the  church  council  and 
wardens,  and  if  these  officers  are  unable  to  bring 
the  difficulty  to  an  amicable  settlement,  they  are 
bound  forthwith  to  acquaint  the  president  with 
the  circumstances  by  a  written  communication, 
who  is  then  to  take  the  matter  in  hand. 

Article  XVIII.  All  the  families  of  our  united 
evangelical  congregations  bind  ourselves  solemnly 
to  attend  regularly  divine  service  agreeable  to  our 
duty;  to  labor  earnestly  for  the  propagation  of  our 
holy  religion;,  frequently  to  attend  the  means  of 
grace;  to  avoid  sectarianism  as  much  as  possible; 
and  to  walk  carefully  according  to  the  prescription 
of  pure  doctrine. 

Article  XIX.  Our  united  zealous  endeavor 
shall  be  directed  to  promote  the  welfare  of  our 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  299 

Church,  the  extension  of  the  religion  of  Jesns,  as 
well  as  of  our  Zion ;  and  with  the  adoption  of  this 
discipline  we  make  a  beginning  of  this  endeavor. 
May  God  furtlier  grant  his  richest  blessing. 

Article  XX.  Should  it  hereafter  be  considered 
necessary,  after  due  reflection,  to  change,  abro- 
gate, or  disannul  any  of  these  Articles  of  Disci- 
pline, or  add  anything  to  the  same  by  the  Church 
assembled  in  Director}^  such  resolution  shall  be 
added  as  a  lawful  by-law  to  these  regulations,  and 
which  member  soever  shall  wilfully  resist  these 
rules,  and  will  in  nowise  agree  to  the  same,  can- 
not find  fault  with  the  Church  to  which  he  has 
hitherto  belonged,  nor  with  the  Directory,  if  he 
shall  be  deprived  of  the  benefits  and  claims  to 
either. 

Acted  and  unanimously  resolved  and  confirmed 
by  the  Directory,  August  8th,  1788;  which  we, 
who  have  been  present  at  this  Church  meeting, 
confirm  with  our  seals  and  subscription  of  our 
names. 

NAMES    OF    MINISTERS    AND    THEIR   SEALS. 

Friedeiiich  Daser,  A.m.,  President  pro  tern,    [l.s.] 
Christian  Theus.  [l.s.] 

J.  G.  Bamberg.  [l.s.] 

Triederich  August  Wallberg.     [l.s.] 
Carl  Friederich  Froelich.  [l.s.] 


300  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 


NAMES    AND    SEALS    OF    THE    DEPUTIES. 

Philip  Berghoch.  [l.s.] 

JoHANN^  George  Koeller.  [l.s.] 

Peter  Michler.  [l.s.  J 

Johannes  Gartmann.  [l.s.] 

George  Gortmann.  [i^-s.] 

Jacob  Buchmann.  [l.s.] 

Leonhard  B.  Buch.  [l.s.] 

Johannes  Schwaigart.  [l.s.] 

John  Jacob  Stiefel.  [l.s.] 

JoHANN  Philip  Zauerwein.  [l.s.] 

Matthias  Sen.  [l.s.] 

Christopher  Schlagel.  [l.s.] 

Heinrich  Koch.  [l.s.] 

JOHANN  BaLTHASER  MARK.  [L.S.] 

Proceedings  of  the  Corpus  EvoMgelicwn  in 
South  Carolina. 

On  tlie  IStli  of  November,  1787,  the  undersigned 
ministers  assembled  themselves  in  Zion's  Cliurch, 
on  Twelve-mile  Creek,  after  due  notice  had  been 
given,  and  uuited  themselves  from  that  day  into 
a  ministerial  society.  The  constitution  proposed 
by  Rev.  Mr.  Wallberg  was  laid  before  the  meet- 
ing and  adopted,  and  Frederick  Daser  was  chosen 
Senior  of  the  ministiy,  and  appointed  the  second 
Sunday  of  January,  1788,  as  the  day  on  which 
they  would  again  meet  at  the  same  place,  to  take 
into  consideration  the  various  petitions  signed  by 
different  German  Protestant  congregations,  and 
further  to  regnhite  the  affairs  of  their  society.  In 
confirmation  whereof  the  ministers  signed  their 
names. 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  301 

Friederich  Daser,  Christian  Theus,  John  George 
Bamberg,  M.  Carl  Binnicher,  Friederioh  August 
Wallberg,  Friederich  Joseph  Wallern,  Carl  Fried- 
erich Froelich. 

Actum,  January  8th,  1788.— T\\q  undersigned 
ministers  assembled  as  members  of  the  Minis- 
terium  in  Zion's  Church,  on  Twelve-mile  Creek. 
Fred.  Aug.  Wallberg  was  unanimously  elected 
Secretary,  and  all  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  min- 
isters were  sworn  on  the  Symbolical  Books.  The 
subscription  of  the  petition  for  incorporation  of 
the  different  congregations  was  laid  before  the 
Ministerium.  Bethel  Church  and  the  new  cons^re- 
gation  of  St.  Martin's  wished  to  have  more  time 
for  consideration  of  the  subject. 

Resolved,  That  the  President  should  inform  the 
members  by  a  circular  of  the  time  of  our  next 
session. 

Signed  by  Revs.  Baser,  Wallberg,  Bamberg, 
Froelich,  and  Theus. 

Actum,  January  9th,  1788. — Rev.  Messrs.  Wall- 
berg and  Bamberg  moved  that  the  subscriptions 
of  Bethel  Church  and  of  the  new  St.  Martin's 
Church  should  be  added  to  the  subscriptions  of 
the  other  churches,  and  laid  before  the  General 
Assembly  of  this  State,  which  motion  was  approved 
and  accepted  by  Rev.  Senior  Baser. 

As  it  had  been  mentioned  the  preceding  day 
that  Mr.  Bamberg  had  for  some  time  performed 
ecclesiastical  duties,  and  had  received  a  call  as 
minister  from  several  congregations,  and  as  it  was 


302  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

known  to  the  Mhiisterium  that  he  had  studied 
theology  but  had  never  been  ordained,  and  as  he 
had  petitioned  for  an  examination  and  ordination, 
it  was 

Resolved^  That  the  Rev.  President  and  Secretary 
examine  Mr.  Bamberg  this  day;  and  he,  the  said 
Bamberg,  being  approved  of  in  said  examination, 
was  this  day  ordained  in  Zion's  Church,  in  the 
presence  of  a  numerous  audience  and  his  church 
officers. 

Fkedh.  Aug.  Wallberg, 

Secretary. 

Actum^  Sandy  JRun^  August  12th^  1788. — Revs. 
Messrs.  Senior  Daser,  Theus,  Bamberg,  and  Wall- 
berg  assembled  in  Salem  Church  at  Sandy  Run, 
with  the  deputies  of  the  respective  congregation?. 
It  was 

Resolved,  That  Bethlehem  Church  should  hence- 
forth be  known  under  the  name  of  "  The  German 
Reformed  Cliurch  at  Fust's  Ford." 

The  act  of  incorporation  passed  by  the  General 
Assembly  of  this  State  was  read;  and  the  Church 
regulations  or  discipline  proposed  by  President 
Daser  was  likewise  read  and  adopted  in  its  nine- 
teen articles,  signed  and  sealed. 

Resolved,  To  hold  the  next  session  in  Zion's 
Church,  January  14th,  1789. 

Actum,  January  19th,  1789. — Revs.  President 
Daser,  Theus,  Bamberg,  Wallern,  and  Secretary 
Wallberg  met  in  Zion's  Church. 

After  prayer  and  sermon,  the  conference  was 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  303 

opened.  The  Church  regulations,  as  adopted, 
signed,  and  sealed,  were  read  once  more  without 
opposition. 

Next  session  is  to  be  held  in  Salem  Church, 
Sandy  Run,  on  the  second  Wednesday  in  the 
month  of  August.  Pastor  Wallern  was  appointed 
to  preach  on  said  occasion. 

Rev.  Senior  Daser  was  again  unanimously 
chosen  President,  and  Wallberg,  Secretary. 
George  Hook  was  appointed  President  of  the  lay 
members  of  the  Directory. 

Notice  of  the  Translator. — The  records  of  the  suc- 
ceeding sessions  of  the  Directory  are  partly  torn, 
and  partly  so  badly  written  that  it  is  impossible 
to  arrange  them  in  any  kind  of  order. 

The  Directory  seems  to  have  met  as  late  as  the 
year  1794;  at  least,  so  far  the  records  go  which  I 
have  seen. 

Signed,  Ernest  L.  Hazelius, 

Principal  of  the  Theological  Seminary,  Lexington,  S.  C. 

The  seven  German  ministers  of  the  Gospel  who 
formed  this  Corpus  Evangelicum  were  located  as 
follows: 

Rev.  Frederick  Daser,  A.M.,  at  St.  Matthew's 
Church,  Orangeburg  District,  South  Carolina. 
He  was  a  Lutheran  minister. 

Mev.  Christian  Theiis,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Congaree  River,  eight  miles  below  Columbia, 
South  Carolina.  He  was  a  German  Reformed 
minister.' 

Rev.  John  George  Bamberg  labored  until  1798  in 


304  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Lexington  District,  South  Carolina,  and  was  pas- 
tor of  Zion's  Church,  as  the  records  of  that  church 
indicate,  when  he  resigned  and  located  himself  in 
Barnwell  District,  South  Carolina,  where  he  re- 
mained to  the  close  of  his  life.  He  was  a  Lutheran 
minister,  and  died  during  the  year  1800. 

Rev.  Frederick  August  Wallberg  labored  among 
the  churches  in  Lexington  District  before  Bam- 
berg's time  of  service,  probably  about  the  time 
the  Corpus  Evangelicum  was  organized.  He  was 
a  Lutheran  minister,  and  is  supposed  to  have  lived 
in  the  Fork  of  the  Saluda  and  Broad  Kivers  to  the 
close  of  his  life. 

Mev.  Carl  Friederich  Froelich,  according  to  J.  C. 
Hope's  statement,  was  a  German  Reformed  min- 
ister, but  where  he  lived  and  labored  is  not  known. 

Rev.  Frederick  Josej^h  Wallern  was  the  pastor  of 
the  churches  in  Kewberry  District,  South  Caro- 
lina. He  was  a  Lutheran  minister,  and  died  about 
the  year  1816. 

Rev.  31.  CarlBiimicher,  according  to  J.  C.  Hope's 
statement,  was  a  Lutheran  minister,  but  where  he 
labored  is  not  positively  known.  It  is  presumed, 
however,  that  he  was  the  pastor  of  the  Hard  Labor 
Creek  congregation,  Abbeville  District,  South 
Carolina,  and  probably  also  served  the  church  on 
Slippery  Creek,  I^inety-six  District. 

From  the  constitution  and  proceedings  of  this 
Corpus  Evangelicum  we  learn  many  interesting 
facts,  namely  : 

1.  That  the  Lutheran  ministers  in  South  Caro- 
lina at  that  time  held  the  Symbolical  Books  of  the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  305 

Liitlierau  Churcli  in  very  high  esteem,  the  records 
eay :  "All  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  ministers 
were  sworn  upon  the  Symbolical  Books;"  that  is, 
they  were  sworn  to  teach  and  preach  its  doctrines. 

2.  They  were  likewise  churchly  in  conducting 
public  worship,  &c.,  as  is  manifested  by  their  ob- 
servance of  all  the  festivals  of  theLutheran  Church, 
catechetical  instruction,  confirmation,  and  opposi- 
tion to  the  inroads  made  upon  the  Chiu'ch  by  the 
surrounding  sects. 

3.  They  still  adhered  to  the  ancient  custom  of 
wearing  the  gow^n,  both  in  "public  and  private," 
in  the  discharge  of  all  the  duties  of  the  ministerial 
office. 

4.  They  were  very  strict  in  the  enforcement  of 
discipline,  both  among  the  ministers  and  lay  mem- 
bers; and  made  provision  for  the  support  of  the 
poor  in  their  midst. 

5.  Parochial  schools  likewise  claimed  the  atten- 
tion of  this  body ;  and  the  keeping  of  church  rec- 
ords was  made  the  duty  both  of  the  pastor  and  sec- 
retary of  each  congregation. 

Section  S.   The  act  of  incorporation  of  the  fifteen  Ger- 
man churches  in  the  interior  of  South  Carolina. 

No.  1414.   An  Act   for  Incorporating  divers  Religious 
Societies  therein  named. 

Whereas^  by  the  constitution  of  this  State,  passed 
the  nineteenth  day  of  March,  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  seventy-eight,  it  is  declared  that  all 
denominations   of  Christian   Protestants   in    this 

26 


806  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

State  shall  enjoy  equal  religious  and  civil  privi- 
leges; and  that  whenever  lifteen  oi'  more  male 
persons,  not  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  pro- 
fessing tlie  Christian  Protestant  religion,  agree  to 
unite  themselves  in  a  society  for  the  purpose  of 
religious  worship,  they  shall  (on  complying  with 
the  terms  thereinafter  mentioned),  be  constituted 
a  cliurch,  and  be  esteemed  and  regarded  in  law, 
as  of  the  established  religion  of  this  State,  and  on 
petition  to  the  legislature  shall  be  entitled  to  be 
incorporated  and  to  equal  privileges;  and  that 
every  society  of  Christians  so  formed  shall  give 
theniselves  a  name  or  denomination  by  which  they 
shall  be  called  or  known  in  law. 

And  whereas,  the  name  of  "Hopewell,"  in  the 
Long  Cane  settlement,  in  the  county  of  Abbeville 
and  State  aforesaid;  and  the  Presbyterian  congre- 
gation or  society  of  Christian  Protestants  of 
"Indian  Town,"  in  Georgetown  District;  and 
also  the  several  congregations  and  societies  of 
Christian  Protestants,  styling  themselves  by  the 
general  appellation  of  "The  Ecclesiastical  Union 
of  the  several  German  Protestant  congregations  in 
the  back  part  of  the  State  of  South  Carolina;"  and 
by  the  particular  names  of: 

"The  Frederician  Church,  on  Cattel's  Creek;" 
"The  German  Calvinistic  Church  of  St.  John,  on  the  Four- 
hole;" 
"The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  St.  Matthew,  in  Amelia 

Township ;" 
"  The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  Salem,  on  Sandy  Eun  ;" 
"The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  Mt.  Zion,  on  Twelve-mile 
Creek;" 


m   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  807 

"The    German    Lutheran  Church    of   Bethel,   on    High   Hill 

Creek;" 
"The  German   Lutheran   Church   of  St.   Peter,  on  Eighteen- 
mile  Creek  5" 
"  The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  St.  Martin  ;" 
"The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  Bethlehem,  on  Forest's 

("Fust's)  Ford;" 
"  The  German  Protestant  Church  of  Bethany,  on  Green  Creek ;" 
"The   German    Protestant   Church   of   Appii   Forum,    Cedar 

Creek;" 
"  The  German  Protestant  Church  dedicated  to  Queen  Charlotte, 

on  Slippery  Creek  ;" 
"The  German  Lutheran  Church  of  St.  George,  on  Hard  Labor 

Creek  ;" 
"The  German   Lutheran   Church  of  St.   Jacob,   on  Wateree 

Creek  ;" 
"The  German   Protestant  Church  of  St.   George,   on  Indian 

Field  Swamp;" 

have  petitioned  the  legislature  of  this  State,  pray- 
ing to  be  incorporated,  and  setting  forth  that  they 
have  severally  complied  with  the  terms  required 
by  the  constitution  as  preparatory  thereunto,  and 
the  allegations  in  the  said  petitions  appearing  to 
be  true. 

I.  Be  it  therefore  enacted,  by  the  honorable,  the 
Senate  and  the  House  of  Representatives,  now  met 
and  sitting  in  General  Assembly,  and  by  the  au- 
thority of  the  same.  That  the  several  and  respec- 
tive societies  hereinbefore  mentioned,  and  the  sev- 
eral persons  who  now  are,  or  shall  hereafter 
become  members  of  the  said  societies,  respectively, 
and  their  successors,  officers,  and  members  of  each 
of  the  said  societies,  shall  be,  and  they  are  hereby 
declared,  respectively,  to  be  a  body  corporate,  in 
law,  in  deed,  and  in  name,  by  the  respective  names 


308  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

and  styles  of:  (Here  follows  a  repetition  of  the 
names  of  all  the  churches  ahove-mentioned.)  And 
bv  their  said  respective  names  shall,  severally, 
have  perpetual  succession  of  officers  and  members, 
and  a  common  seal,  with  power  to  change,  alter, 
break,  and  make  new  the  same,  as  often  as  they, 
the  said  corporations,  shall  severally  judge  expe- 
dient; and  each  and  every  of  the  said  corporations 
respectively  are  hereby  vested  with  all  the  powers, 
privileges,  and  advantages  wdiich  are  specified  and 
expressed  in  "the  Act  for  incorporating  divers 
religious  societies  therein  named,"  passed  the 
twenty-sixth  day  of  March,  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  eighty-four. 

II.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  b}^  the  authority 
aforesaid,  That  this  act  shall  be  deemed  and  taken 
as  a  public  act,  and  notice  shall  be  taken  thereof 
in  all  courts  of  justice  and  elsewhere  in  this  State; 
and  the  same  may  be  given  in  evidence  on  the 
trial  of  any  issue  or  cause,  without  being  specially 
pleaded. 

In  the  Senate,  Friday,  the  twenty-ninth  of  Feb- 
ruary, in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  eighty-eight,  and  in  the  twelfth  3^ear 
of  the  independence  of  the  United  States  of 
America. 

John  Lloyd, 

President  of  the  Senate. 

John  Julius  Pringle, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 

1.  The  question  now  arises :  Were  there  any  other 
German  churches  in  South  Carolina  besides  these 


IN    NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  309 

fifteen,  incorporated  by  the  above  act  of  the  legis- 
lature, and  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston  ? 

With  the  single  exception  of  the  German  lie- 
formed  St.  John's  Church  on  the  Congaree  River, 
of  which  Rev.  Theus  was  the  pastor  at  one  time, 
there  is  no  knowledge  of  any  other  German  Church 
in  the  State  at  that  time;  but  why  it  was  not 
incorporated,  or  what  had  become  of  it,  is  not 
known.     It  has  now  long  since  ceased  to  exist. 

2.  Of  these  fifteen  German  Churches  nine  were 
Lutheran;  seven  of  these  Lutheran  Churches  are 
in  existence  at  the  present  day,  the  other  two  are, 
St.  Martin's,  of  which  no  record  can  be  found  in 
any  of  the  minutes  of  Lutheran  synods;  and  St. 
George's  Church  on  Hard  Labor  Creek,  Abbeville 
District,  which  had  already  ceased  to  exist  in  1811, 
according  to  the  missionary  report  of  Rev.  R.  J. 
Miller. 

3.  The  other  six  churches  are:  {a.)  The  Freder- 
ician  Church  on  Cattel's  Creek,  which  w^as  located 
in  Orangeburg  District.  According  to  Drs.  Jamie- 
son's  and  Shecut's  statement  in  the  Appendix  of 
Ramsay's  History  of  South  Carolina,  this  church 
was  erected  in  1778,  and  named  after  Andrew 
Frederick,  '^  who  was  its  principal  founder;"  it  is 
called  by  them  a  Presbyterian  Church,  but  this  is 
an  error;  it  was  doubtless  a  German  Reformed 
Church.     It  has  long  since  ceased  to  exist. 

{b.)  The  German  Calvinistic  Church  of  St.  John, 
on  the  Fourhole  Creek,  was  also  located  in  Orange- 
burg District,  which  has  likewise  ceased  to  exist. 
There  are  four  Lutheran  Churches  now   in  that 


310  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

part  of  Orangeburg  County :  St.  Matthew's,  Mt, 
Lebanon,  Pine  Grove,  and  Trinity,  which  have, 
doubtless,  absorbed  the  principal  part  of  the  de- 
scendants of  these  two  German  Reformed  Churches, 
whilst  others  have  connected  themselves  with  other 
denominations. 

(c.)  The  German  Protestant  Church  of  Bethany 
on  Green  Creek  cannot  be  located  by  the  writer, 
nor  are  any  traces  of  it  to  be  found  at  the  present 
time;  if,  as  is  supposed,  it  was  located  in  Newberry 
District,  its  material  must  have  been  absorbed  by 
the  Lutheran  Church  or  other  denominations. 

((/.)  The  German  Protestant  Church  of  Appii 
Forum,  on  Cedar  Creek,  was  located  in  Richland 
District,  near  the  Fairiield  line.  Its  history  has 
already  been  given.  The  congregation  and  its 
house  of  worship  are  long  since  no  more,  and  the 
material  has  been  absorbed  in  the  Methodist 
Church. 

(e.)  The  German  Protestant  Church,  dedicated 
to  Queen  Charlotte,  on  Slippery  Creek,  Ninety-six 
District,  had  its  location  either  in  Abbeville  or 
Edgefield  Distri(;t,  which  comprise  part  of  the 
territory  of  what  was  then  known  as  Ninety-six 
District.  This  church  has  likewise  long  since 
passed  out  of  existence. 

(/.)  The  German  Protestant  Church  of  St. 
George,  on  Indian  Field  Swamp,  was  located  in 
Barnwell  District,  fifty  miles  from  Charleston,  is 
known  no  more  under  that  name.  There  are  two 
Lutheran  Churches  in  that  vicinity  at  the  present 
time. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  311 

4.  If  these  fifteen  German  Churches  comprised 
the  entire  German  element  in  the  interior  of  South 
Carolina  in  the  year  1788,  then,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  all  other  Lutheran  Churches,  not  mentioned 
in  this  act  of  incorporation,  must  have  been  organ- 
ized at  a  subsequent  period.  This  fact  will  enable 
any  future  writer  on  the  subject  to  unravel  their 
history  the  more  readily. 

Section  6.  Arrival  of  Revs,  Bernhardt,,  Storch  and 
Rosehen  in  North  Carolina,  A,D.  1787  and  1788. 

In  the  year  1787  Rev.  Niissmann's  heart  was 
gladdened  in  being  permitted  to  welcome  another 
laborer  into  the  mission  field  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  North  Carolina.  This  was  the  Rev. 
Christian  Eberhard  Bernhardt,  a  native  of  Stutt- 
gard,  in  the  kingdom  of  Wurtemberg.  He  was 
ordained  in  his  native  country,  and  came  to  Amer- 
ica in  the  year  1786.  He  landed  at  Savannah,  and 
then  proceeded  to  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  where  he 
remained  twelve  months.  In  1787  he  went  to 
Rowan  Count}^,  N.  C,  and  labored  among  the 
churches  there  one  year,  doubtless  in  that  part  of 
the  county  east  of  the  Yadkin  River,  now  known 
as  Davidson  County.  In  1788  he  took  charge  of 
the  congregations  in  Stokes  and  Forsy  the  Counties, 
which  had  been  organized  and  frequently  visited 
by  Rev.  N'ussmann;  here  Rev.  Bernhardt  was 
married,  but  the  records  do  not  mention  the  name 
of  his  wife.  One  year  later  he  removed  to  Guil- 
ford County,  where  he  remained  to  the  close  of 


312  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

tlie  year  1800,  when  lie  accepted  the  call  to  be- 
come the  pastor  of  Zion's  and  several  other  Lu- 
theran churches  in  Lexington  Distri'ct,  S.  C.  This 
account  has  been  furnished  by  liis  daughter-in- 
law,  the  widow  of  the  late  Eev.  David  Bernhardt. 

In  September,  1788,  Rev.  Kussmann,  the  faith- 
ful pioneer  and  father  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
]^orth  Carolina,  was  permitted  to  grasp  the  hand 
of  another  brother  in  the  ministry,  who  was  sent  to 
bis  assistance  by  the  Helmstaedt  Mission  Society, 
namely :  the  Rev.  Carl  August  Gottlieb  Storch, 
whose  early  history  is  best  described  by  himself 
in  his  manuscript  journal,  an  extract  of  which  has 
been  translated  and  published  in  the  Evangelical 
Review,  vol.  viii,  pp.  398-401:.  However,  we  will 
let  Rev.  Storch  speak  for  himself,  simply  giving 
his  remarks  an  English  translation. 

"  I,  Carl  August  Gottlieb  Storch,  was  born  in 
Helmstaedt,  Duchy  of  Brunswick,  June  16th, 
1764;  m}'  ftither's  name  was  George  Friedericli 
Storch,  a  native  of  the  city  of  Danneberg  and  mer- 
chant in  Helmstaedt:  ray  mother's  name  was  Yon 
Asseburg.  In  the  year  1779  I  was  confirmed  by 
Rev.  Abbot*  Velthusen,  after  which  I  went  three 
years  to  the  high  school  of  Helmstaedt,  when  I 
was  declared  by  the  Director,  Professor  Winde- 
burg,  fitted  to  enter  the  University,  and  in  the 
year  1782, 1  became  a  student  of  the  University  of 
Helmstaedt.  Having  devoted  myself  three  years 
to  theological    sciences,  I  was  recommended    in 

*  The  word  "  Abbot "  is  the  title  of  an  office. 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  313 

1785  by  Rev.  Abbot  Velthusen  to  the  tutorship  of 
a  young  nobleman,  Yon  Hodenberg,  who  resided 
with  Major  Yon  Scheither  in  Gisthorn,  where  I 
remained  only  one  year,  because  the  young  noble- 
man, Yon  Hodenberg,  was  elected  to  the  position 
of  page  in  Hanover;  whereupon  I  became  the 
teacher  of  Mr.  Friese's  children,  a  merchant  of 
Fresenhede,  near  Bremen.  Having  remained 
there  two  years,  I  received  the  call  and  order  from 
Rev.  Abbot  Yelthusen  to  go  as  a  pastor  to  North 
Carolina,  whereupon  I  was  examined  and  ordained 
to  the  ministry,  and  journeyed  in  Maj^,  1788,  from 
Germany,  and  arrived  in  America  about  the  end 
of  June  of  the  same  year.  God  be  praised  that 
he  has  thus  far  wonderfully  and  paternally  led  me, 
and  safely  preserved  me  in  the  midst  of  dangers. 
I  selected  my  first  residence  in  Salisbury,  and 
commenced  to  board  with  Lewis  Beard  on  the  8th 
of  JSTovember,  1788." 

On  another  page  of  his  journal.  Rev.  Storch 
makes  the  following  record :  "  April  16th,  1788. 
I  left  Fresenhede  and  journeyed  to  i^orth  Caro- 
lina, in  IlTorth  America.  The  cause  of  my  making 
this  distant  and  dangerous  journey  was  as  follows  : 
Rev.  Adolph  ITussmann,  w'ho  was  sent  as  a  min- 
ister from  German}^  to  North  Carolina  in  the  year 
1773,  and  who  is  still  living,  greatly  desired  Rev. 
Abbot  Yelthusen  to  send  him  several  assistant 
ministers,  when  Rev.  Yelthusen  selected  and  per- 
suaded me  to  undertake  this  journey.  Upon  the 
ducal  consent  and  command  I  was  examined  by 
the  five  Helmstaedt  professors,  and  ordained  as  a 

27 


314  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

minister  for  JS'orth  Carolina  by  Abbot  Yelthusen. 
All  the  expenses  of  my  journey  were  paid,  and, 
upon  request,  I  received  the  written  assurance 
from  my  ruler  of  the  land,  that,  if  I  should  return 
after  a  few  years,  I  should  still  receive  my  promo- 
tion. Under  those  circumstances,  and  in  reliance 
upon  God,  I  went  to  sea  on  the  4th  of  May,  1788, 
and  arrived  safely  in  America,  landing  in  Balti- 
more on  the  27th  of  June  of  the  same  year.  The 
whole  journey  lasted  seven  weeks  and  five  days. 
In  Baltimore  I  met  with  a  kind  and  friendly  re- 
ception, and  after  having  enjoyed  a  delightful  stay 
of  six  weeks  in  that  cit}^  I  journeyed  by  water  to 
Charleston  in  six  days.  In  Charleston  I  remained 
fourteen  days,  purchased  a  horse  for  eleven  pounds 
sterling,  and  rode  to  Rev.  ]^ussmann's  residence, 
making  a  circuit  of  about  300  English  miles,  and 
arrived  there  at  the  beginning  of  the  month  of 
September,  1788.  Rev.  Nussmann  serves  a  con- 
gregation at  Bufi:alo  Creek.  After  having  re- 
cruited myself,  we  made  arrangements  with  the 
cono-reo-ations  that  desired  to  have  me  as  their 
pastor.  Three  congregations  elected  and  called 
me,  namely :  the  one  in  Salisbury,  where  I  first 
took  up  my  residence;  the  second,  named  Organ 
Church,  on  Second  Creek,  ten  miles  from  Salis- 
bury; and  the  third.  Pine  Church,  which,  how- 
ever, I  had  to  resign,  and  now  only  serve  two  con- 
gregations, Salisbury  and  Organ  Church,  which 
have  promised  me  in  writing  £80  North  Carolina 
currency,  paper  money ;  the  funeral  sermons  and 
marriages  are  paid  extra,  usually  with  one  dollar. 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  315 

I  commenced  m}^  ministry  on  the  twenty-third 
Sunday  after  Trinity,  and  at  Salisbury  the  Sunday 
following.  On  the  7th  of  Januarj^  1789,  1  com- 
menced to  preach  in  the  Irish  settlement  once 
every  month,  for  which  I  am  promised  £13  or  £14 
North  Carolina  currency." 

The  high  esteem  in  which  Rev.  Storch  was  held 
in  his  native  country  can  best  be  seen  from  the 
account  given  by  Rev.  Dr.  Yelthusen,  in  one  of 
the  Helmstaedt  Reports,  of  the  ordination  and 
subsequent  departure  of  Rev.  Storch  to  North 
Carolina.     Dr.  Velthusen  says: 

"On  the  12th  day  of  March,  1788,  the  candi- 
date, Carl  August  Gottlieb  Storch,  was  ordained, 
under  the  highest  ducal  patronage,  to  the  gospel 
ministry  as  an  assistant  preacher  for  North  Caro- 
lina. The  ordination  address  has  been  published 
under  the  title,  'Address  and  Prayer  at  the  Con- 
secration of  Mr.  Carl  A.  G.  Storch  as  an  Evan- 
gelical Assistant  Preacher  for  North  Carolina,  &c. 
One  and  a  half  sheets,  to  be  had  at  the  book-store 
of  our  publications.' 

"He  has  been  sent  away  with  the  most  gracious 
assurances  and  best  wishes  of  his  Fatherland,  that 
should  he,  in  the  lapse  of  several  years,  have  good 
occasion  to  return  to  the  same,  after  having  faith- 
fully discharged  his  official  duties  among  our 
brethren  in  the  faith  in  that  country,  he  may  find 
an  open  situation  as  teacher  in  his  Fatherland. 

"He  was  born  in  Helmstaedt,  and  was  educated 
under  our  immediate  auspices.  During  the  years 
which  he  spent  as  tutor,  we  received  repeated  as- 


316  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

surances  of  liis  capacity  and  fidelity  as  a  teacher 
from  those  who  had  opportunity  to  observe  him 
daily,  and  had  also  heard  him  preach,  where  he 
is  still  held  in  gracious  remembrance.  In  addi- 
tion to  that,  at  an  appointed  examination,  con- 
ducted in  the  strictest  manner,  we  have  found 
him  well  prepared  and  fitted  for  his  office,  and 
the  public  evidences  of  his  capacity  for  preaching 
and  catechizing  which  he  has  rendered  have  given 
cause  of  universal  satisfaction.  The  family  in 
which  he  last  served  as  tutor  were  very  unwilling 
to  part  with  him ;  and  after  having  taken  his  de- 
parture from  us  on  his  way  to  America,  he  re- 
turned to  this  friendly  family,  in  order  that  he 
might  be  in  the  vicinity  of  Bremen,  and  await 
the  sailing  of  the  vessel  which  is  to  take  him  to 
Baltimore.  It  will  now  wholly  depend  on  the 
affectionate  reception  which  our  brethren  in  the 
faith  in  America,  and  the  citizens  generally,  espe- 
cially in  ^orth  Carolina,  will  bestow  upon  him, 
in  what  manner  we  shall  hereafter  aid  them  in 
their  necessary  church  affairs." 

A  few  months  after  the  arrival  of  Rev.  Storch 
came  the  Rev.  Arnold  Roschen,  who  was  likewise 
sent  to  North  Carolina  by  the  Helmstaedt  Mission 
Society.  He  was  a  native  of  the  city  of  Bremen, 
educated  by  the  Rev.  Pastor  Nicolai,  of  that  city — 
that  is,  as  is  supposed,  under  his  auspices;  and, 
on  the  eve  of  his  departure  to  America,  married  a 
lady  of  Bremen,  doubtless  with  the  view  that  he 
might  become  permanently  settled,  and  be  con- 
tented in  his  new  home. 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  317 

All  these  facts  are  gathered  from  the  Helm- 
staeclt  Reports,  iii  which  there  is  found  also  a 
puhlished  letter,  which  Rev.  Roschen  wrote  to 
his  friend  and  preceptor,  Rev.  Kicolai,  giving  him 
an  account  of  his  journey  to  America,  kind  and 
hospitable  reception  at  Charleston,  and  safe  ar- 
rival in  his  field  of  labor  in  that  part  of  Rowan 
County,  now  known  as  Davidson  County.  Rev. 
Roschen  writes  as  follows: 

"  North  Carolina,  Rowan  County,  near  Abbot's  Creek ;  in 
the  midst  of  the  forests  of  North  America,  sixty-six 
miles  from  the  Blue  Ridge  Mountains,  eighteen  miles 
from  Salem  ;  from  April  29th  to  June  2 1st,  1789. 

"Our  journey  was  a  fortunate  one,  although  it 
lasted  twelve  weeks  from  shore  to  shore.  With 
the  exception  of  two  heavy  showers  in  the  Chan- 
nel, which  soon  passed  over,  we  did  not  have  a 
single  storm  upon  our  long  journey  by  sea;  on 
the  contrary,  the  weather  was  as  good  as  our 
friends  wished  for  us  at  our  departure.  True, 
sea-sickness  did  often  and  long  inconvenience  us, 
but  not  in  such  a  manner,  as  that  we  have  to  com- 
plain greatly  concerning  it.  The  want  of  good 
water  and  of  necessary  refreshments  was  the  hard- 
est to  bear.  After  the  !N'ew  World  came  to  our 
view — a  joy  which  cannot  be  described  with  words 
— the  wind  became  very  unpropitious  to  us.  The 
great  number  of  vessels  that  were  gathered  around 
us  made  the  crossing  along  the  coast  very  danger- 
ous; and  here  we  would  have  been  lost  without 
hope,  when  we  thought  that  we  had  overcome  all 
difficulties,  had  not  Providence  miraculously  saved 


318  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

US.  After  a  few  clays  we  arrived  safely  over  the 
bar — a  sand-bank  wliicli  incloses  the  sliip-cbannel, 
and  in  which  there  are  but  three  openings  where 
a  vessel  can  enter,  but  which  do  not  permit  an 
entrance  without  the  aid  of  a  pik)t.  Here  a  new 
and  glorious  prospect  awaited  us.  Life  and  com- 
motion, a  coming  together  and  crossing  of  so 
many  kinds  of  vessels,  on  all  sides  the  loud  and 
resounding  song  of  the  sailors,  a  lovely  day,  the 
view  of  Charleston,  the  islands  that  lay  around 
us,  the  trees  which  had  not  yet  shed  their  foliage, 
the  negroes  and  their  apparel,  the  language — in 
short,  everything  that  we  saw  here,  and  particu- 
larly the  long-wished-for  termination  of  our  jour- 
ney by  sea — awakened  within  us  impressions  and 
feelings  which  we  had  never  experienced  before. 
On  the  same  evening,  IsTovember  28th,  1788,  we 
were  already  brought  to  shore,  and  entered  into 
the  house  of  a  German;  but  we  did  not  remain 
there  long.  The  merchant,  Mr.  Gabel  (a  native 
of  Bremen,  who  had  also  kindly  entertained  our 
Storch,  and  had  in  various  ways  offered  his  hand 
to  our  (mission)  institute,  says  Dr.  Yelthusen), 
heard  that  same  evening  of  our  arrival,  sent  a 
friend  to  us  with  reproaches,  that  we  had  passed 
the  house  of  our  countryman,  and  desired  us  to 
move  into  his  dwelling  immediately,  if  we  wished 
to  be  regarded  as  his  friends.  He  offered  us  sev- 
eral rooms,  received  us  in  a  noble  manner,  and 
spoke  to  us  very  obligingly.  At  the  same  time 
he  commanded  his  negroes  to  look  upon  us  as 
their  masters,  so  that  we  w^anted  for  nothing. 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  319 

"I  found  an  upright  friend  in  Rev.  Mr.  Faber, 
the  German  minister,  who  treated  me,  during  the 
ten  weeks  that  we  had  to  remain  liere,  in  such  a 
manner,  as  any  one  could  have  desired  under  the 
circumstances.  He  besought  me  to  conduct  Divine 
service  with  him,  and  to  preach  whenever  it  would 
be  agreeable  to  me.  In  this  manner  I  preached 
here  about  five  times.  Upon  the  whole,  I  must 
acknowledge  that  all  the  Germans  endeavored  to 
make  the  place,  which  is  in  itself  a  very  charm- 
ing one,  as  agreeable  to  us  as  possible,  although 
the  obligations  became  very  costly  to  us;  for  every- 
thing, even  the  smallest  article,  is  very  dear  here, 
so  much  so  that  I  and  my  wife  could  live  very 
well  in  my  native  city  on  the  amount  that  has  to 
be  expended  here  for  extras. 

''At  length  the  wagons,  sent  by  our  congrega- 
tions, came  for  my  things,  and  horses  for  us  to 
ride — for  every  person  rides  here — and  we  two 
began  our  journey  of  300  North  Carolina  miles 
on  horseback,  which  was  at  first  very  fatiguing. 
It  was  very  hard  for  me  to  leave  Charleston;  I 
had  many  opportunities  there  of  becoming  profit- 
ably associated,  and  I  found  at  times  very  noble 
friends,  whose  magnanimity  astonished  me.  At 
the  first  moment  of  my  stay  there,  I  was  delighted 
at  the  banishment  of  all  ceremonies,  which  among 
us  are  regarded  so  sacredly.  Besides  that,  we 
heard  such  dreadful  reports  of  the  people  where 
my  congregations  are  situated,  which,  however, 
God    be   praised!    arose    from   the   fact,    that   in 


320  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Charleston  the  citizens  are  as  badly  informed  as 
in  Germany  concerning  this  country. 

"We  were  accompanied  several  miles  on  our 
journey  by  our  friends ;  our  way  then  went  through 
a  great  part  of  South  to  E'orth  Carolina.  This 
overland  journey  lasted  fourteen  days,  and  was 
very  wearisome,  as  may  be  readily  supposed. 
Sometimes  we  slept  at  night  at  a  plantation,  where 
we  were  friendly  received  and  kindly  treated;  at 
other  times  we  lodged  with  a  new  settler,  where 
seven  or  eight  people  rested  in  the  same  room  be- 
side us,  among  whom,  at  times,  were  sick  and 
dying  persons,  and  our  repose  became  very  un- 
pleasant; then  again  we  slept  under  a  tree ;  and 
sometimes  under  a  wagon  and  in  the  rain  ;  nev- 
ertheless, we  had  generally  very  pleasant  weather. 

"We  passed  through  three  American  towns, 
which,  on  account  of  the  small  number  of  houses, 
would  scarcely  be  considered  by  us  as  villages. 
Among  these  was  Camden,  which  is  very  hand- 
somely built,  containing  about  thirty  houses,  and 
is  distant  about  150  miles  from  Charleston,  where 
we  lodged  for  the  night  with  a  German  from 
Hamburg,  named  Schiitt,  whose  brother  lives  in 
Charleston  and  is  in  good  circumstances. 

"At  length  we  arrived  in  Salisbury,  where 
Pastor  Storch  resides,  whom  I  especially  esteem 
and  love  as  a  friend,  and  who  rendered  me  very 
important  services,  where  we  were  as  kindly  re- 
ceived as  we  could  have  expected.  Upon  the  first 
intelligence  of  our  arrival,  the  deacons  of  one  of 
the  nearest  of  my  congregations,  together  with 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  321 

some  wealthy  planters  residing  there,  came  to  the 
town  to  welcome  us.  The  people  here  know  noth- 
ing of  compliments,  but  express  their  opinions 
in  a  manner  that  indicates  good  thinking  facul- 
ties. They  informed  us  that  we  would  not  find  a 
dwelling-house  as  yet  prepared  for  us,  because, 
upon  consultation,  it  was  thought  best  to  wait 
until  my  arrival,  so  that  I  could  myself  direct  the 
building  of  the  same.  And  now  the  whole  train 
moved  along,  increased  by  Pastor  Storch's  accom- 
panying us,  until  we  came  to  the  place  appointed 
for  me,  situated  on  Abbot's  Creek,  a  small  stream 
that  empties  itself  about  twelve  miles  distant  into 
the  Yadkin  River.  A  deacon  of  my  central  con- 
gregation took  us  to  his  home,  where  we  remained 
several  months,  until  we  moved  to  our  own  plan- 
tation of  two  hundred  acres  of  land,  which  we 
have  purchased  advantageously,  assisted  by  sev- 
eral upright  planters  of  this  place ;  we  were  ad- 
vised to  take  this  step  by  Pastor  E'ussmann,  who 
came  to  meet  us  in  Salisbury,  in  which  advice 
Rev.  Storch  also  joined. 

"  As  soon  as  we  arrived,  the  deacons  out  of  three 
con2^re2:ations  came  and  visited  us.  A  fourth  con- 
gregation,  which  is  now  almost  the  largest,  also 
placed  itself  under  my  ministry.  So  now  I  am 
the  pastor  of  four  churches.  The  people  from  all 
parts  of  the  country  brought  us  abundantly  flour, 
corn,  hams,  sausages,  dried  fruit,  chickens,  tur- 
keys, geese,  &c.,  so  much  so,  that  there  has  been 
scarcely  any  necessity  to  spend  one  farthing  for 
our  housekeeping  up  to  this  time." 


822  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

According  to  these  statements,  it  may  be  seen 
that  the  Lord  of  the  vineyard  had  now  five  laborers 
in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  N'orth  Carolina,  namel}^ 
Revs.  Kussmann,  Arndt,  Bernhardt,  Storch,  and 
Eoschen,  and  the}^  were  "workmen  that  needed 
not  to  be  ashamed,"  for  they  were  all  talented 
men,  and  filled  with  the  spirit  of  their  Master; 
besides,  tliey  were  men  of  the  most  profound 
learning;  even  Arndt  had  received  an  excellent 
education,  although  he  came  to  this  country  in 
the  capacity  of  a  school  teacher,  and  all  had  been 
brought  up  in  the  most  refined  society,  and  might 
have  been  an  acquisition  and  an  honor  to  any  col- 
lege or  university  in  the  land;  but  because  they 
were  Germans,  and  spoke  a  foreign  language, 
little  was  ever  known  of  them  by  the  general  in- 
habitants of  the  State ;  however,  they  were  so 
much  the  better  known,  and  the  more  highly 
esteemed  by  the  people  among  whom  the}'  lived, 
and  for  whose  spiritual  welfare  they  labored. 

Section  7.     The  Helmstaedt  Mission  Society — Letters 

from  Rev.'s.  Nussraann^  Storch^  and  Hoschen, 

'published  in  the  Helmstaedt  Heports,  indicating 

the  condition  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North 

Carolina  during  the  years  1788  and.  1789. 

The  Lutlieran  Church  is  at  present  tolerably 
familiar  with  the  titles  of  two  extensive  German 
publications,  denominated  ''The  Halle  Reports" 
and  "The  Urlsperger  Reports;"  however,  it  is 
not  generally  known  that  a  similar  work,  although 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  323 

not  SO  extensive,  and  tliereft)re,  perhaps,  more 
readable,  entitled  "The  Helmstaedt  Keports,"  to 
which  frequent  allusion  has  been  made,  had  like- 
wise been  published  for  the  purpose  of  imparting 
information  to  European  readers,  concerning  the 
state  of  some  of  our  Lutheran  mission  stations  in 
America. 

The  missionary  spirit  in  the  Lutheran  Church 
was  engendered  more  than  two  centuries  ago,  and 
soon  after  the  close  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War. 
Various  mission  societies  have  been  formed  in 
Europe,  under  a  variety  of  appellations,  but  all 
having  the  same  object  in  view,  that  of  spreading 
the  knowledo;e  and  benefits  of  the  Christian  reli- 
gion  in  foreign  lands.  The  different  mission  fields 
appear  to  have  been  properly  apportioned  and 
selected  by  the  numerous  societies  over  all  Prot- 
estant Europe. 

Among  the  various  fields  of  labor  of  our  pious 
German  forefathers,  America  was  not  forgotten, 
and  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Europe  was  foremost 
in  the  ranks  in  her  efforts  to  provide  for  the  spir- 
itual welfare  of  her  people  on  this  continent  and 
its  adjacent  islands.  ]^ot  only  were  faithful  and 
self-sacrificing  missionaries  sent,  their  salaries 
paid  them  by  charitable  donations  of  Christians  in 
the  Fatherland,  but  also  churches,  school-houses, 
and  sometimes  orphan  asylums  were  both  erected 
and  supported  by  these  munificent  contributions. 
Books  of  worship  and  devotion,  as  well  as  of  edu- 
cation and  instruction,  were  sent  gratuitously  in 
great  numbers  to  our  forefathers  in  America. 


324  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

In  point  of  time  the  Swedish  Delaware-River 
Mission  was  the  first  enterprise  of  this  kind;  its 
object  was  the  planting  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
systematically  and  firmly  in  America,  not  men- 
tioning the  Danish  Lutheran  mission  in  Green- 
land, and  the  different  missions  on  some  of  the 
islands  along  the  Atlantic  coast  of  America. 

Next  in  order  was  the  Ebenezer  Mission  in 
Georgia,  with  which  we  are  tolerably  familiar,  and 
the  extensive  minute  reports  of  its  missionaries, 
which  w^ere  sent  to  the  parent  society  in  Augsburg, 
and  cover  about  six  thousand  quarto  pages  of 
printed  matter,  were  all  published  by  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Urlsperger,  and  thus  originated  "  The  Urls- 
perger  Reports." 

Then  the  University  and  Orphan  House  at  Halle, 
institutions  founded  by  the  celebrated  August 
Herrmann  Francke,  sent  missionaries  to  another 
vacant,  field  farther  north,  which  claimed  their 
attention,  and  the  Rev.  li.  M.  Muhlenberg,  D.D. 
and  others  were  sent  to  Pennsylvania,  who  like- 
wise transmitted  the  reports  of  their  labors  to  the 
parent  Mission  Society,  and  which  were  all  pub- 
lished under  the  title  of  "The  Halle"  or  "The 
Pennsylvania  Reports." 

However,  between  Pennsylvania  and  Georgia 
there  was  a  large  territory  still  unoccupied,  and, 
at  a  later  period,  the  Professors  of  the  Julius 
Charles  University,  in  the  city  of  Helmstaedt, 
Duchy  of  Brunswick,  became  interested  in  this 
field,  midway  between  the  two  American  missions 
established  by  Halle  and  Augsburg,  and  on  this 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  325 

wise  was  i^orth  Carolina  selected  and  regarded  as 
a  hopeful  locality  for  still  farther  missionar}^  opera- 
tions, and  the  Rev.  John  Caspar  Yelthusen,  D.D., 
Professor  of  Theology  in  the  above-mentioned 
university,  with  his  associates,  sent  missionaries, 
upon  the  earnest  call  of  Rev.  IsTussmanu,  to  labor 
among  the  Germans  in  [N'orth  Carolina.  The  re- 
ports which  these  missionaries  sent  to  the  parent 
society  in  Helmstaedt,  were  also  published,  and 
were  denominated  "The  Helmstaedt  or  North 
Carolina  Reports,"  which,  until  recently,  were  no 
longer  know^n  to  exist. 

From  an  article  in  one  of  these  published  re- 
ports, we  are  informed  that  "  up  to  the  present 
time  (March  13th,  1788),  the  net  proceeds  of  dona- 
tions and  funds  advanced  upon  the  publication  of 
our  (their)  seven  advertised  books  of  instruction, 
amount  already  to  1238  rix-dollars,  13  groschen, 
and  8  pfennigs."  This  was  the  beginning  of  a 
treasury  for  the  welfare  of  the  North  Carolina 
mission  field;  in  other  of  the  reports,  acknowl- 
edgments of  additional  donations,  and  the  names 
of  the  donors  occur.  Dr.  Velthusen  goes  on  to 
state : 

"  For  nearly  a  year  past  it  appeared  that  we  w^ould 
not  be  able  to  carry  out  our  purpose  in  so  short  a 
time,  namely,  the  sending  of  well-qualified  preach- 
ers to  North  Carolina."  (Here  follows  what  has 
been  stated  already  in  another  section.)  "  Our 
spirits  w^ere  likewise  revived  by  the  statement  of 
several  other  trustworthy  friends,  who  had  been 
in  Yirginia,  as  well  as  to  the  borders  of  North 


326  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Carolina,  and  who  were  unanimous  in  praising 
the  Christian  willingness  of  our  evangelical  breth- 
ren in  the  faith  in  that  countrj^  to  provide  liber- 
ally for  those  preachers  sent  to  them,  so  that  they 
need  want  for  nothing,  provided  they  were  in  any 
way  worthy  of  their  confidence." 

In  the  follawing  pages  of  this  narrative  Dr.  Yelt- 
husen  mentions  the  names  and  acts  of  kindness  of 
several  friends  of  the  mission  enterprise  who  re- 
sided in  New  York,  Baltimore  and  Virginia;  be- 
sides, the  delay  of  the  publication  of  several  works 
for  the  benefit  of  the  mission,  occasioned  by  the 
call  and  removal  of  Prof.  Kliigel  to  Halle;  the 
names  and  character  of  the  works  intended  for 
publication  ;  the  delay  of  the  publication  of  a  geo- 
graphical work  until  the  reception  of  more  recent 
information  from  Charleston  ;  list  of  donors  to  the 
mission  cause  in  which  the  Professors  had  em- 
barked, &c. ;  the  whole  of  which  is  dated  and 
signed  by  them  as  follows: 

"Helmstaedt,  at  the  Ducal  Brunswick-Llineburg 
Julius-Charles  University,  March  13th,  1788. 

"J.  C.  Velthusen,  Professor  of  Theology,  and 
Abbot. 

"H.  P.  C.  Hencke,  Professor  of  Theology,  and 
Abbot. 

^'L.  Crell,  Professor  of  Medical  Science  and 
Philosophical  Mineralogy  and  Mining. 

*'G.  S.  Kliigel,  Professor  of  Philosophy  and 
Mathematics. 

*'P.  J.  Bruns,  Professor  of  the  History  of  Phil- 
osophy and  Literature." 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  327 

A  Letter  from  Rev.  A,  Nussmann  to  Rev.  Dr. 
^Velthusen. 

North  Carolina,  Mecklenburg  County, 

Buffalo  Creek,  November  12th,  1788. 

Honorable  Abbot,  my  best  Friend: 

The  indications  of  Providence  develop  them- 
selves more  and  more  visibly  in  this  religious 
V70rk,  so  that  God's  finger  is  made  manifest  here 
in  the  w^ork  for  the  welfare  of  his  people.  In 
Charleston  a  warm  interest  is  taken  in  our  affairs. 
E-ev.  Mr.  Faber  is  an  active  man.  Rev.  Storch's 
sickness  gave  me  much  uneasiness  and  sorrow,  for 
I  love  him  on  account  of  his  learning,  virtue,  spirit 
and  friendship,  which  had  already  commenced  in 
Germany.  All  persons  who  see  and  hear  him, 
love  and  honor  him.  But  even  in  this  respect  has 
God  helped  us, — Eev.  Storch  is  again  restored; 
and  ma}^  God  preserve  his  health  in  future,  so  that 
whether  I  live  or  die,  my  expectations  concerning 
him  may  be  realized. 

A  change  has  taken  place  concerning  his  call  to 
the  congregation  in  Guilford  County;  Providence 
has  directed  otherwise.  Storch  felt  at  that  time 
so  feeble,  that  he  believed  himself  to  be  unable  to 
make  the  long  journey  on  horseback,  which  was 
necessary  to  reach  his  field  of  labor.  Besides,  he 
would  have  then  been  one  hundred  miles  distant 
from  me,  and  in  a  wilderness  where  no  messen- 
ger can  be  obtained.  These  difficulties  were  at 
once  removed  by  God.  A  call  was  extended  to  him 
from  three  vacant  congregations,  Salisbury,  Pine 
Church  and  Second  Creek,  with  the  written  as- 


328  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

surance  of  a  salary  of  £110,  and  in  a  few  days  after- 
wards £14  more  from  a  congregation  seven  miles 
distant  from  Salisbury,  which  he  will  have  to 
serve  during  the  week-day.  These  congregations, 
through  their  deacons,  promised  to  pay  the  freight 
on  his  things,  which  will  be  about  two  Spanish  dol- 
lars for  every  100  pounds,  but  they  could  not  pay 
his  traveling  expenses  from  Baltimore  to  Charles- 
ton. It  is  a  hard  matter  to  take  everything  out  of 
the  pocket  of  a  private  man,  in  a  country  where  the 
congregation  have  as  yet  nothing  of  their  own. 

A  book  printing  establishment  would  be  of  the 
greatest  benefit  to  religion,  and  which  could  read- 
ily obtain  assistance  here,  if  we  onlj^  had  the  type. 
The  capital  necessary  for  such  an  establishment 
could  not  onl}^  be  kept  up,  but  also  improved,  for 
there  is  no  German  printing  office  from  Georgia 
to  Maryland,  and  not  even  a  good  English  one  in 
Il^orth  Carolina.  If  we  only  had  one,  then  we 
could  suit  ourselves  to  circumstances,  and  print 
those  publications  immediately,  which  are  the 
most  necessary ;  the  transportation  from  Germany 
is  so  slow,  and  the  want  in  a  new  country  so 
urgent,  that  one  dare  not  wait  long  to  meet  this 
want. 

An  organ  is  also  necessary,  as  it  must  be  our 
chief  concern  to  reinstate  church  music.  In  the 
last  sixteen  years  I  have  had  an  oversight  of  several 
hundred  square  miles,  partly  by  personal  visits 
and  partly  through  reliable  intelligence,  and  I  have 
found  that  in  proportion  to  the  music,  which  the 
people  were  able  to  conduct,  congregations  spring 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  329 

up, increase,  flourish,  deca}-,  fall  into  ruin.  An  im- 
provement, therefore,  mast  be  made ;  fifty  copies 
of  an  excellent  singing-book,  judiciously  scattered 
in  schools  and  families,  would  soon  secure  its  adop- 
tion as  a  school  and  family  singing-book;  after- 
wards it  would  come  into  general  use  through 
the  country. 

The  370  rix-dollars  should,  according  to  the  in- 
tent of  the  donors,  be  a  permanent  investment  for 
the  benefit  of  religion,  principally  in  the  congre- 
gations from  Rocky  River  to  Salisbury.  This  would 
be  satisfactory  to  all,  and  would  re-establish  and 
preserve  peace  and  quietude.  God,  who  has  so  often 
and  visiblj^  aided  us  in  these  matters,  and  brought 
forth  great  results  out  of  small  things;  who  has 
always  arranged  matters  differently  to  what  I  had 
imagined,  but  always  better  than  my  expectations, 
will  also  help  here,  and  through  his  wisdom  direct 
everything  in  such  a  manner,  so  that  the  four  phi- 
lanthropists, your  assistants,  in  connection  with 
all  those  upright  persons  who  have  aided  the  good 
cause,  may  experience  joy  in  their  work. 

I  am,  &c.. 

Your  most  devoted  friend, 

Adolph  ISTussmann. 

Eeport  of  Rev,  C.  A,  G.  Storch,  dated  May  28th, 
1789. 

This  report  was  sent  to  the  Helmstaedt  Mission 
Society,  from  which  Dr.  Yelthusen  makes  the  fol- 
lowing extracts. 

"Rev.  Storch,  as  well  as  Rev.  Roschen,  are  both 

28 


330  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

satisfied  in  the  midst  of  their  congregations.  Rev. 
S.  mentions,  that  of  his  three  congregations,  Organ 
Church,  on  Second  Creek,  is  the  strongest,  and 
consists  of  eightj-seven  families.  He  praises  the 
people,  who  treat  him  with  love  and  respect,  and 
supply  him  with  the  necessaries  of  life."  (Here 
the  salary,  &c.,  is  again  stated,  much  the  same  as 
in  Nussmann's  report.)  *'His  congregation  is 
building  a  house  for  him,  and  have  offered  him  a 
loan  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  a  plantation, 
without  which  one  cannot  succeed  there.  He  still 
lives  in  Salisbury,  where  an  academy  has  been  es- 
tablished, in  which  there  are  some  students,  who 
receive  instruction  in  Hebrew  from  him.  In  ad- 
dition to  that  duty,  he  has  also  established  a  small 
German  school,  so  that  the  youth  may  accustom 
themselves  to  a  purer  German  language.  He  ex- 
pects to  confirm  about  fifty  children  next  harvest 
season.  He  says  that  Rev.  Roschen  is  likewise 
treated  with  love  and  respect;  that  he  has  four 
congregations,  and  receives  from  them  about  £100, 
current  paper  money;  that  he  resides  about  eigh- 
teen miles  from  him,  on  the  other  side  of  a  broad 
river;  has  already  purchased  a  plantation,  and  is 
accustoming  himself  well  to  the  climate  and  mode 
of  living  in  that  country." 

Bejjcrt  of  Rev.  Arnold  Roschen. 

"In  my  middle  congregation  I  have  confirmed 
twenty-four  persons;  in  the  congregation  situated 
towards  the  Yadkin   River  I  confirmed  twelve. 


IN  NOETH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  831 

and  in  the  otbers  I  have  this  dut}^  yet  before  me/^ 
(Here  follows  a  lengthy  description  of  the  cus- 
tomary funeral  ceremonies.)  '^  Marriages  are  here 
performed  in  two  modes;  the  one,  according  to 
the  rules  of  the  Church,  requires  to  be  announced 
three  times;  the  other  is  managed  as  follows: 
The  groom  gets  a  certificate  from  Salisbury,  rides, 
accompanied  by  liis  friends,  with  his  bride  to  the 
minister,  or,  if  there  is  none  in  the  place,  to  the 
magistrate,  where  the  marriage  takes  place.  The 
first  questions  of  the  minister  are,  Whether  he 
has  taken  his  bride  without  her  parents'  knowl- 
edge ?— this  occurs  frequently — and.  Whether  the 
piarents  have  given  their  consent?  If  an 3^  one  has 
stolen  his  bride,  and  has  a  license  from  Salisbury, 
then  the  objections  of  the  parents  avail  nothing. 
Upon  the  whole,  in  this  free  country,  a  son,  when- 
ever he  has  arrived  at  his  twenty-first  year,  and  a 
daughter,  as  soon  as  she  is  eighteen  years  old,  is 
no  longer  under  the  parents'  control.  Persons 
generally  marry  very  young,  because  they  need 
not  be  much  concerned  for  the  future.  He  that 
will  work,  can  soon  have  a  plantation ;  and  poor 
people  are  not  to  be  met  here  at  all.  A  person 
can  often  meet  with  families  that  have  thirteen  to 
fourteen  children,  nearly  all  living.  I  myself  am 
acquainted  with  a  planter  here,  w^ho  has  had  a 
family  of  twenty-three  children,  born  of  one 
mother,  and  who,  w^itli  the  exception  of  two,  are 
all  living  and  well. 

"My   catechumens,   whom    I   have    instructed 
three  days  in  every  week  for  seven  weeks,  con- 


332  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

sist  partly  of  married  persons,  some  of  them  as 
old  as  thirty  years,  and  young  persons  from  six- 
teen to  twenty  years  of  age.  Among  other  things, 
I  advise  them  not  to  intermarry  with  persons  of 
other  nationalities,  because  such  mixed  marriages 
are  generally  unhappy,  and  sometimes  occasion 
murder  and  homicide,  and  because  the  English  in 
these  regions  belong  to  no  religious  denomina- 
tion, and  do  not  permit  their  children  to  be  bap- 
tized, nor  send  them  to  school. 

''Rev.  Storch  and  I  recently  passed  by  the 
court-house  in  Salisbury,  at  the  moment  when  a 
man  was  standing  in  the  pillory.  A  German 
called  to  us  to  stop  awhile,  and  see  how  the 
Americans  punish  rogues  and  thieves.  Upon  my 
asking  him,  'The  criminal  is  certainly  not  a  Ger- 
man?' I  received  the  literally  true  reply, 'Il^ever 
has  a  German  stood  in  the  pillory  in  Salisbury; 
nor  has  ever  a  German  been  hung  in  this  place.' 

"Most  persons  are  well  satisfied  with  their  plan- 
tations in  this  country.  I  recently  visited  a  member 
of  my  congregation,  and  inquired  of  him  how  he 
was  getting  along.  To  which  he  replied,  '  Were 
we  to  complain,  God  would  have  to  punish  us. 
We  have  need  of  nothing,  and  possess  a  large 
surplus  above  our  wants.  We  are  enjoying  good 
health,  and  everything  is  in  good  order  on  our 
plantations;  and  since  we  are  possessed  of  such  an 
abundance  so  soon  after  the  war,  we  must  cer- 
tainly become  wealthy  if  God  continues  to  give 
us  peace.' 

"So  far  as  my  situation  as  planter  is  concerned, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  333 

I  can  say  nothing  else  than  that  I  am  very  forta- 
nate  and  happy,  and  it  would  cost  me  a  great 
struo^frje  on  this  account,  as  well  as  that  I  am  be- 
loved  and  respected  as  pastor  by  my  congregation, 
to  exchange  my  present  location  with  any  other. 
I  pray  God,  that  he  would  not  separate  Storch  and 
myself,  for  he  is  now  also  beginning  to  feel  satis- 
fied. I^ot  long  ago,  when  I  had  service  in  my 
upper  congregation,  I  was  surrounded  by  the 
elders  and  deacons,  who  besought  me  never  to 
leave  them.  A  certain  Colonel  declared,  that  he 
would  never  again  be  connected  with  the  church, 
if  I  were  to  move  away.  I  can  assure  you  that  I 
will  not  abandon  these  congregations  so  easily  as 
persons  in  Germany  doubtless  imagine.  We  min- 
isters are  treated  with  a  respect,  which  is  shown 
to  no  other  person.  There  is  no  difl'erence  in 
rank  acknowledged  here,  and  yet  no  one  has  ever 
spoken  with  me,  who  did  not  hold  his  hat  in 
his  hand.  I  must  say  the  same  of  Storch;  he  is 
treated  with  such  love  and  respect  by  his  congre- 
gations, as  few  ministers  in  Germany  are  treated. 
"At  first  Storch,  in  his  hypochondria,  looked 
upon  all  things  in  a  false  light;  besides,  his  ar- 
rival in  America  was  unpropitious"  (that  is,  he 
was  laid  upon  a  bed  of  sickness  soon  after  his 
arrival  in  North  Carolina);  "now  he  speaks  difi*er- 
ently.  Nussmann,  who  is  a  good  and  upright 
man,  lives  upon  his  plantation  in  very  moderate 
circumstances.  Arndt,  formerly  a  catechet,  now 
a  preacher,  possesses  two  tine  plantations,  is 
wealthy,  and  edifies  his  people   by   his  life  and 


334  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

conduct.  We  all  preach  in  black  clothes  and 
collar,  but  mostly  without  a  gown,  and  oftentimes 
in  our  overcoat,  during  bad  weather  in  winter. 

"I  endeavor  to  make  the  Divine  service  as  im- 
pressive as  possible,  and  suitable  to  the  occasion, 
but  as  simple  as  I  can.  I  dare  not  make  my  dis- 
course shorter  than  three-quarters  of  an  hour,  be- 
cause there  are  members,  who  have  to  ride  eighteen 
miles  to  church,  and  in  each  church  there  is  ser- 
vice only  once  every  four  weeks.  Baptisms  take 
place  after  the  sermon,  and  in  the  presence  of  the 
whole  congregation.  Whenever  the  communion 
is  administered  on  Sunday,  the  preparatory  ser- 
vice takes  place  on  Fridaj^  or  Saturday  preceding. 
E'othing  is  known  here  of  private  confession." 

This  interesting  report  of  Eev.  Roschen  is  quite 
lengthy,  and  has  been  somewhat  abridged,  because 
it  alludes  to  customs  that  would  require  a  lengthy 
explanation,  before  they  would  be  properly  under- 
stood by  the  general  reader,  and  because  some 
things  are  reported  of  his  own  personal  aflairs, 
which  would  not  be  interesting  to  any  one  at  the 
present  time. 

Rev.  Dr.  Yelthusen  yet  adds,  that  a  letter  had 
arrived  from  Mr.  Gabel  in  Charleston,  South  Car- 
olina, fourteen  daj^s  ago,  corroborating  the  above 
church  intelligence.  Mr.  Gabel,  who  is  on  a  visit 
to  Bremen,  writes,  that  he  had  left  Nussmann 
Avell  and  hearty  in  Charleston  (doubtless  Rev. 
ISTussmann  was  on  a  visit  there  at  the  time);  that 
Storch  has  no  inclination  to  return  to  Germany,  and 


*      IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  335 

assures  ns  tliat  Roschen  is  well  satisfied,  and  that 
he  will  have  good  profit  in  a  few  years  from  the 
tract  of  land  which  he  purchased  there.  Mr. 
Gabel  likewise  states,  that  in  his  journey  through 
Georgia  he  met  with  the  pastor  at  Ebenezer,  Rev. 
Mr.  Bergmann,  and  found  him  in  a  situation  in 
which  he  may  be  well  satisfied. 

Section  8.  Further  Intelligence  from  St.  John's  and 
Organ  Churches ;  and  a  Ministerial  Assembly 
in  North  Carolina  called  to  Ordain  the  Rev. 
Robert  Johnson  31iller. 

Extract  from  the  old  German  (St.  John's) 
Church-book.— "January  16th,  1790,  the  church 
council  held  a  meeting,  when  the  following  mem- 
bers were  present:  Paul  Barringer,  Peter  Quill- 
mann,  George  Meissenheimer,  Daniel  Jarrett, 
Matthew  Meyer,  Nicholas  Reitenhauer,  Jacob 
Fegert,  Andreas  Stanch,  Ulrich  Diirr,  Jacob  Bast, 
and  the  pastor,  Adolph  I^ussmann.  Paul  Bar- 
ringer, Sr.,  was  chosen  chairman  of  the  council. 
The  object  of  the  meeting  was  to  promote  a 
greater  degree  of  union  and  true  sincerity  in 
matters  of  religion,  both  in  schools  and  churches. 

"It  was  resolved,  that  the  doors  of  the  church 
shall  no  longer  be  closed  before  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Lord's  day  services;  but  as  soon  as 
one-half  of  the  congregation  shall  have  been  as- 
sembled, the  doors  shall  then  be  opened,  and  at 
ten  o'clock  the  services  of  the  sanctuary  shall 
commence;  and  those  persons  who  shall  be  guilty 


336  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  making  disturbance  during  worship  shall  be 
reported  to  the  magistrate.  The  services  shall 
also  commence  in  future  without  any  further  call- 
ing in  of  those  persons  who  remain  outside. 

"  .Resolved,  That  at  the  celebration  of  the  Lord's 
Supper,  alms  shall  be  gathered  at  the  doors.  The 
members  of  the  congregation  are  furthermore  re- 
quested to  celebrate  their  marriages  in  the  church, 
at  which  time  of  rejoicing  they  and  their  benevo- 
lent guests  are  desired  to  contribute  alms  to  the 
church,  and  to  lay  their  mites  upon  the  altar,  as 
is  customary  in  many  places  in  our  Evangelical 
Church. 

"  Resolved,  That  whenever  slanderous  reports  are 
circulated,  which  might  cause  dissensions  in  the 
church,  they  shall  be  made  known  to  our  Presi- 
dent, Paul  Barringer,  who  shall  investigate  the 
matter,  and  shall  decide  in  such  a  way,  as  shall 
best  promote  the  interests  of  true  religion  and  the 
church. 

'■^Resolved,  That  persons  bringing  their  children 
to  the  church  to  be  baptized,  must  make  the  fact 
known  before  service,  name  the  sponsors,  the  day 
of  the  child's  birth,  the  names  of  the  parents,  so 
that  it  may  be  recorded  in  the  church-book." 

Pastor  Storch  commenced  his  labors  at  Organ 
Church,  October  26th,  1788;  and  in  Salisbury  on 
the  Sunday  following,  J^ovember  2d,  being  the 
23d  and  24th  Sundays  after  Trinity.  A  very  con- 
cise constitution  was  introduced  and  adopted  on  the 
following  ]N"ew  Year's  Day,  1789,  whinh,  however, 
contains  nothing  of  special  interest  to  the  general 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  337 

reader,  except  that  it  indicates  how  much  our  fore- 
fathers felt  and  hibored  for  the  order,  discipline 
and  consequent  welfare  of  their  congregations. 

Organ  Church  alone  pron:iised  their  pastor  an 
annual  salary  of  £40,  North  Carolina  currency, 
and  the  number  of  those  members,  who  subscribed 
this  amount,  and  undersigned  the  new  constitu- 
tion, amounted  to  seventy-eight  persons. 

In  the  year  1791,  the  present  massive  and,  as 
was  then  considered,  large  and  commodious  stone 
church  was  erected,  having  large  galleries  on  each 
side,  except  where  the  pulpit  stands;  and  an  organ, 
excellent  in  its  day,  built  by  one  of  the  members, 
Mr.  Steigerwalt,  was  placed  in  the  centre  of  the 
long  gallery,  and  opposite  the  pulpit.  The  pulpit, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  was  goblet-shaped,  with  a 
sounding-board  overhead,  and  has  but  recently 
been  removed  when  the  church  was  repaired. 
Those  time-honored  relics  are  fast  passing  away 
by  the  encroachments  of  our  novelty-seeking  age. 

The  first  English  Lutheran  preacher  in  North 
Carolina  was  the  Eev.  Eobert  Johnson  Miller, 
who  was  a  Scotchman  by  birth,  a  native  of  Bal- 
dovia,  Angusshire,  near  Dundee,  born  July  11th, 
1758,  the  third  son  of  George  and  Margaret  Miller. 
His  parents  designed  him  to  study  for  the  min- 
istiy,  and  for  this  purpose  sent  him  to  the  Dundee 
classical  school.  After  he  had  completed  his  edu- 
cation there,  and  before  he  entered  the  ministry, 
he  migrated  to  America,  and  arrived  in  Charles- 
town,  Massachusetts,  A.D.  1774.  His  brother,  an 
East  and  West  India  merchant  of  that  place,  had 

29 


838  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

invited  liim  from  Scotland  to  reside  with  liim, 
with  whom  he  labored  as  an  assistant  in  his  busi- 
ness for  some  time. 

It  now  happened  that  his  adopted  country  be- 
came involved  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  when 
he  at  once  declared  himself  a  friend  of  libert}-,  and 
as  soon  as  General  Greene  passed  through  Boston 
with  his  army,  young  Miller  enlisted  as  a  Eevo- 
lutionary  soldier.  He  was  engaged  in  the  battles 
of  Long  Island,  where  he  received  a  flesh  wound 
in  the  face,  of  Brandy  wine.  White  Plains,  and  the 
siege  of  Valley  Forge;  but  God  preserved  his  life 
in  all  these  enscao-ements,  as  he  had  a  more  c^lori- 
ous  work  in  store  for  him.  With  the  armj^  he 
traveled  to  the  South,  where  he  remained  after 
peace  was  declared  and  the  army  disbanded. 

He  now  remembered  his  duty  to  God,  his  for- 
mer vows,  and  his  preparation  for  the  ministry, 
and  applied  for  license  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  con- 
nection with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  as 
the  minutes  of  the  Methodist  Conference  plainl}^ 
indicate;  and  thus  authorized,  he  commenced 
preaching  in  the  western  counties  of  ]N'orth  Caro- 
lina, traveling  often  one  hundred  miles  to  meet 
his  appointments. 

Although  licensed  to  preach  by  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Conference,  yet  not  having  the  authority 
to  administer  the  sacraments,  his  people  of  V/hite 
Haven  Church,  in  Lincoln  County,  sent  a  petition 
to  the  Lutheran  pastors  of  Cabarrus  and  Rowan 
Counties,  with  high  recommendations,  praying 
that  he  might  be  ordained  by  them,  which  was 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  339 

accordingly  clone  at  St.  John's  Cliurcb,  Cabarrus 
County,  on  the  20th  of  May,  1794.  The  ordina- 
tion certificate  is  still  extant,  although  much  muti- 
lated, and  inasmuch  as  it  contains  some  interesting 
historical  facts,  it  is  here  inserted: 

"To    ALL    WHOM    IT    MAY    CONCERN,    GREETING: 

"  Whereas^  A  great  number  of  Christian  people 
in  Lincoln  County  have  formed  themselves  into  a 
society  by  the  name  of  White  Haven  Church,  and 
also  having  formed  a  vestry:  We,  the  subscribers, 
having  been  urged  by  the  pressing  call  from  the 
said  Church  to  ordain  a  minister  for  the  good  of 
their  children,  and  for  the  enjoyment  of  ye  gospel 
ordinances  among  them,  from  us,  the  ministers  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  Korth  Carolina,  have  sol- 
emnly ordained,"  (here  much  of  the  certificate  is 
torn  away  and  lost)  "according  to  ye  infallible 
word  of  God,  administer  ye  sacraments,  and  to 
have  ye  care  of  souls ;  he  alwaj^s  being  obliged  to 
obey  ye  Rules,  ordinances  and  customs  of  ye 
Christian  Society,  called  ye  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  America.  Given  under  our  hands  and 
seals,  >Torth  Carolina,  Cabarrus  County,  May  20th, 
1794. 

"Signed  by  Adolphus  I^Tussmann,  Senior,  Jo- 
hann  Gottfriedt  Arendt,  Arnold  Roschen,  Chris- 
topher Bernhardt,  and  Charles  Storch." 

On  the  reverse  side  of  this  certificate  the  Lu- 
theran ministers  gave  their  reasons  why  they  had 
ordained  a  man  who  was  attached  to  the  Episcopal 
Church  as  a  minister  of  that  denomination. 


340  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

As  all  the  Lutheran  ministers  were  present  at 
the  ordination  of  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller,  there  must 
have  heen  a  synodical  or  conferential  meeting  of 
some  kind  held  at  that  time,  as  such  actus  minis- 
ieriales  are  performed  generally  on  those  occasions. 
This  conclusion  is  substantiated  b^^  the  fact  that 
Miller  went  to  St.  John's  Church  with  the  view  to 
be  examined  and  ordained,  in  accordance  with  the 
petition  of  his  congregation;  and  Rev.  Nussmann's 
name  is  signed  to  the  certificate  of  ordination  as 
Senior,  2i\\  office  lionorablj  conferred  by  such  a  body 
at  that  time.  It  is,  therefore,  but  reasonable  to 
conclude  that  the  first  ecclesiastical  assembly  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  ISTorth  Carolina  was  held  in 
St.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus  County,  in  the  month 
of  May,  1794,  and  that  the  first  minister  ordained 
by  that  Lutheran  Ministerium  was  the  Rev.  R.  J. 
Miller. 


Section  9.  Death  of  Revs.  Nussmann  and  3Iartin — 
Resignation  of  Rev.  John  Charles  Faher — Re- 
moval of  Rev.  JBe?mhardt  to  South  Carolina — 
Return  of  Rev.  Roschen  to  Germany — Arrival 
of  Revs.  Paul  and  Philip  Henkel. 

Rev.  Nussmann's  labors  in  J^orth  Carolina  ex- 
tended over  a  period  of  more  than  twenty  years, 
remaining  faithfully  at  his  post  until  God  called 
him  to  his  rest.  He  was  the  pioneer  minister  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  State,  and  commenced 
his  labors  among  his  people  in  the  da^^s  of  their 
colonial  hardships  and  trials;  he  had  been  with 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  341 

them  through  all  the  devastating  influences  of  a 
most  sanguinary  war;  he  had  seen  them  rise  again 
to  comparative  comfort  and  prosperity  nnder  the 
new  government;  he  had  ministered  to  them  in  all 
circumstances  of  life,  and  had  himself  experienced 
many  trials  and  afflictions  through  which  he  was 
called  to  pass.  All  denominations  of  Christians, 
that  had  ever  heard  of  him,  meiUion  his  name  with 
honor  and  praise.  "  Caruther's  Life  of  Rev.  David 
Caldwell,  D.D.,"  a  Presbyterian  work,  speaks  of 
jSTussmann  as  having  "labored  faithfully  in  pov- 
erty and  privations."  Dr.  Yelthusen,  in  the  Ilelm- 
staedt  Reports,  says:  "The  intelligence  which  I 
liave  received  from  strangers  concerning  jSTuss- 
mann,  of  which  there  is  not  the  slightest  intima- 
tion to  be  found  in  his  own  letters,  informs  us,  that 
his  faithfulness  in  his  ministerial  office  is  so  great, 
that  he  places  his  temporal  welfare  and  the  care 
of  his  children's  worldly  prosperity  too  far  in  the 
background,  and  is  more  earnestly  concerned  for 
the  building  up  of  the  Church,  than  for  the  success 
of  his  planting  interests." 

Duriiig  his  ministry  he  had  suffered  many  pri- 
vations, as  he  had  never  received  an  adequate  sup- 
port for  himself  and  family;  and  during  the  Revo- 
lutionary War,  he  was  often  in  despair  of  his  life 
on  account  of  his  liberal  principles.  At  one  time 
he  was  obliged  to  secrete  himself  in  the  tall  under- 
growth along  the  banks  of  a  small  stream  near  his 
house,  in  order  to  escape  the  fury  of  the  Tories, 
wdio  had  prowled  about  destroying  valuable  lives, 
and  robbing  persons  of  their  property  and  daily 


842  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

bread.  The  Helmstaedt  Mission  Society  sent  liini 
a  selection  of  valuable  books  for  bis  libraiy,  and 
other  publications  to  be  disposed  of  for  his  benefit, 
but  it  is  doubtful  whether  he  realized  much  from 
the  sale  of  them.  It  is  known,  that  some  of  these 
books  were  donated  by  him  to  indigent  persons. 

An  anecdote  is  related  of  him  by  Christopher 
Melchor,  Esq.,  that  on  one  occasion,  when  he  re- 
ceived but  one  dolhir  for  a  marriage  fee,  and  some 
person  remarked,  that  the  sum  was  rather  a  small 
one,  he  good-humoredly  remarked:  "It  is  small 
if  the  wife  proves  to  be  a  good  one,  but  if  other- 
wise, it  is  sufficiently  large." 

Shortly  after  Rev.  Nussraann  came  to  this  coun- 
try, he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Barbara  Layrle, 
a  daughter  of  Christopher  Layrle,  one  of  the  depu- 
ties sent  to  Germany  to  bring  pastors  and  teachers 
to  I^orth  Carolina;  w^ith  her  he  lived  in  blissful 
barmon}^  and  was  the  father  of  several  sons  and 
dauofhters,  none  of  whom  are  now  livino^;  but  his 
grandchildren  and  descendants  to  the  fifth  gen- 
eration are  still  to  be  met  with  in  Central  Kortb 
Carolina,  respected  by  all  who  are  acquainted 
wdth  them. 

Pastor  ITussmann  had  for  some  time  been  af- 
flicted with  a  cancer  on  his  neck,  and  it  became 
evident  that  it  would  terminate  in  his  death,  yet  he 
bore  his  affliction  meekly  and  with  Christian  forti- 
tude, when  on  the  3d  of  ^N'ovember,  1794,  his 
family  and  friends  were  called  to  witness  the  de- 
parture of  a  faithful  husband,  father  and  pastor. 
It  was  a  severe  loss  to  his  congregation ;  he  was 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  343 

their  first  pastor,  and  had  labored  long  and  faith- 
fully for  them;  and  how  they  would  now  be  sup- 
plied with  the  means  of  grace,  was  a  question  not 
easily  answered.  His  memory  is  still  cherished 
by  the  members  of  St.  John's  Church,  who  have 
placed  a  new  marble  tombstone  at  the  head  of  his 
grave;  the  former  one,  an  ancient-looking  blue 
stone  slab,  upon  which  time  had  done  its  work,  is 
now  safely  and  sacredly  deposited  in  St.  John's 
Church,  and  still  bears  the  following  German  in- 
scription: ^'Christus  ist  mein  Leben,  Sterben  ist 
mein  Gewinn.  Das  Andenken  der  Gerechten 
bleibet  im  Segen.  Hier  ruhen  die  Gebeine  des 
treuen  Predigers,  Adolph  Nussmann,  in  Deutsch- 
landgeboren,  im  August,  1739,  gestorben  den  3ten 
November,  1794"  ("For  me  to  live  is  Christ,  to 
die  is  gain.  The  memory  of  the  righteous  is 
blessed.  Here  repose  the  remains  of  the  faithful 
preacher,  Adolphus  ITussmann,  born  in  Germany, 
August,  1739,  died  I^ovember  3d,  1794.")  He  was 
aged  55  years,  3  months,  and  some  days. 

Besides  having  labored  in  Cabarrus  County,  he 
also  performed  missionary  duty  in  several  German 
settlements  in  the  northern  part  of  I^orth  Carolina, 
as  before  stated.  The  following  record  is  taken 
from  the  minutes  of  the  ]^orth  Carolina  Synod  of 
1831:  "The  Rev.  Mr.  ]N'ussmann,  weak  as  he  was, 
established  two  congregations  in  Surry,  now  Stokes 
County,  and  instructed  and  confirmed  old  and 
young;  these  churches  have  not  yet  died  out." 
More  could  not  be  said  to  his  praise  than,  that  he 
lived  the  life  of  a  pious  and  useful  Christian,  and 


344  THE   LtTHERAN   CHURCH 

died  in  the  triumphs  of  that  Gospel,  which  he 
faithfully  preached. 

A  few  months  after  ^N^ussmann's  death,  God 
called  another  and  once  active  laborer  in  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  the  Carolinas  to  his  rest;  this 
was  the  Rev.  John  Nicholas  Martin,  who  had  be- 
come aged  and  infirm,  and  was  no  longer  able  to 
perform  any  active  duties  of  the  gospel  ministry, 
but  who  still  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  welfare  of 
the  Church.  *'  lie  was  born  at  Zvveibriickeu 
(Deux-Ponts),  in  Rhenish  Bavaria,  and  emigrated 
to  Korth  America  about  the  middle  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century.  He  was  then  a  married  man  with 
several  children.  The  colony,  after  some  delay, 
settled  in  Anson  County,  near  South  Carolina. 
From  this  point  Rev.  Martin,  with  the  larger  por- 
tion of  his  congregation,  removed  to  a  district  be- 
tween the  Broad  and  Saluda  Rivers,"  but  labored 
mostly  in  Charleston,  as  pastor  of  St.  John's 
Church,  where  he  finally  made  his  permanent 
home  on  a  farm  located  about  a  mile  from  the  city; 
''there  he  closed  his  honored  and  useful  life,  July 
27th,  1795."  His  descendants  are  numerous,  the 
most  of  whom  are  still  attached  to  the  Lutheran 
Church,  and  are  devoted  members  of  the  same. 

In  the  year  1800,  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Char- 
leston became  vacant  by  the  resignation  of  Rev. 
John  Charles  Faber,  on  account  of  the  failure  of 
his  health.  According  to  Ramsay's  History  of 
South  Carolina,  vol.  ii,p.  23,  reprinted  edition.  Rev. 
Faber's  successor  was  Rev.  Matthew  Frederic,  but 
no  such  name  occurs  in  any  of  the  records  of  the 


IN   NOETH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  345 

Church  now  accessible,  and  it  is  exceedingly 
doubtful  whether  Dr.  Ramsay's  statement  is  cor- 
rect. The  statement  of  the  vestry  of  that  church, 
made  a  few  years  ago,  and  extracted  from  the  old 
church-book,  is  as  follows:  "Rev.  Mr.  Pogson 
officiated  on  Sundays  for  a  short  time,  and  on  his 
retiring,  Mr.  Faber  consented  to  serve  the  church 
as  far  as  his  strength  would  allow."  No  other 
minister's  name  is  mentioned  until  Mr.  Faber's 
successor,  the  younger  Faber,  is  introduced  in  the 
narrative  as  the  regular  pastor.  The  vacancy  con- 
tinued five  years. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1800,  Rev.  C.  E.  Bern- 
hardt received  and  accepted  the  call  as  pastor  of 
the  Saluda  charge,  in  Lexington  District,  South 
Carolina,  to  which  place  he  removed  with  his 
family  from  Guilford  County,  North  Carolina;  by 
this  removal  another  vacancy  was  created  in  the 
Lutheran  Church  of  that  State.  But  this  was  not 
the  only  charge  which  suffered  in  this  manner; 
the  Rev.  Arnold  Roschen,  who  was,  at  first,  so  well 
satisfied  with  his  field  of  labor,  and  had  no  other 
thought  but  that  of  continuing  there  the  remainder 
of  his  life,  now  changed  his  mind,  when  his  heart 
yearned  for  his  Fatherland,  and  he  returned  to 
Germany  about  the  year  1800;  however,  his  place 
was  soon  occupied  by  the  arrival  of  Rev.  Paul 
Henkel,  whose  name  occurs  in  the  Halle  Reports 
as  a  catechet  laboring  in  Virginia,  but  who  was 
afterwards  ordained  by  the  Ministerium  of  Penn- 
83d  van  i  a. 

In  the  year  1801,  the  Rev.  Philip  Ilenkel,  a  sou 


346  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  Rev.  Paul  Henkel,  came  to  J^ortli  Ccirolhia,  and 
took  charge  of  the  Guilford  pastorate,  made  vacant 
by  the  removal  of  Rev.  Bernhardt  to  South  Caro- 
lina. It  is  stated  in  the  Helmstaedt  Reports,  that 
a  third  minister  was  to  have  been  sent  by  Helm- 
staedt Mission  Society  to  North  Carolina;  he  is 
spoken  of  as  "a  candidate  of  a  noble  heart  and 
excellent  attainments,"  but  for  some  reason  or 
other  he  never  came  to  America. 


Section  10.  St.  John's  Churchy  Cabarrus  Counts/, 
iV.  (7.,  after  Rev.  Nussmann's  death — Hejwrt  of 
Rev.  Storch  to  Dr.  Velthasen — Decline  of  the 
German  Reformed  Church  in  South  Carolina. 

After  the  death  of  Pastor  ^^ussmann,  St  John's 
Church  remained  vacant  for  two  years,  after  which 
time  it  was  supplied  temporarily  one  year  with  the 
labors  of  Rev.  Storch,  so  his  journal  informs  us, 
and  in  1797  the  Rev.  Adam  Nicholas  Marcard,  who 
had  been  laboring  in  the  vicinity,  at  Cold  Water 
Creek,  a  newlj-  organized  church,  became  the 
pastor  of  St.  John's  Church,  and  labored  there 
nearly  three  years,  and  then  also  removed  to 
South  Carolina.  It  must  be  said  to  his  credit, 
that  the  records  of  the  church  during  his  time 
were  neatly  made  by  himself,  being  both  ample 
and  well  arranged. 

As  no  other  pastor  could  be  obtained.  Rev. 
Storch  took  charge  of  this  congregation,  and 
served  it  in  connection  with  his  other  churches. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  347 

He  was  a  faithful  laborer,  and  introduced  many 
wholesome  reforms,  but  his  health  failed  him, 
and  recommended  that  the  congregation  elect 
another  pastor,  when  the^^  called  the  Rev.  John 
Henkel,  from  Virginia,  who  accepted  the  call  in 
1803,  and  was  on  the  point  of  moving  to  North 
Carolina,  when  God  called  him  from  time  to  eter- 
nity. There  was  now  no  other  alternative  left  but 
for  Rev.  Storch  to  continue  his  labors  among  this 
people,  and  he  remained  their  pastor  until  the  year 
1821,  laboring  as  faithfully  as  his  health  would 
permit. 

The  condition  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Worth 
Carolina  at  this  time  is  reported  in  a  letter  of  Rev. 
Storch  to  Rev.  Dr.  Yelthusen,  dated  "  Salisbury, 
E".  C,  February  25th,  1803,"  and  published  in  one 
of  the  Doctor's  works.     Pastor  Storch  writes: 

^'It  is  now  nearly  three  years  that  I  live  in  very 
sad  circumstances ;  not  only  have  I  suiFered  during 
this  time  from  various  severe  attacks  of  sickness, 
which  had  brought  my  body  near  to  death,  but 
likewise  from  an  apparently  incurable  disease  of 
the  eyes,  which  seems  to  baffle  all  medical  skill, 
and  made  it  impossible  for  me  either  to  read  or 
write.  I  am,  however,  quite  restored  from  my 
sickness  of  last  fall,  a  disease  similar  to  yellow  fever, 
and  which  rages  in  this  entire  vicinity  with  great 
mortality.  I  now  feel  tolerably  strong,  and  my 
eyes  are  somewhat  better;  nevertheless,  according 
to  the  opinion  of  the  physician,  I  need  not  expect 
any  permanent  restoration  of  my  health  in  this 


348  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

climate.  However,  we  have  an  eternity  before  us, 
where  we  will  be  always  well. 

"  The  present  condition  of  this  country  is  re- 
markable, both  in  a  political  and  religious  aspect. 
Party  spirit  is  risen  to  a  fearful  height.  Infidelit}^ 
prevails  to  a  great  extent,  both  among  the  higher 
and  lower  classes  of  societ3\ 

"  I  still  serve  my  old  congregations,  and  I  con- 
tinue to  preach  the  doctrines  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
crucified,  in  simplicity,  and  have  happily  experi- 
enced the  power  of  his  grace  upon  myself  and 
others.  The  prevalence  of  infidelity,  the  contempt 
of  the  best  of  all  religions,  its  usages  and  servants, 
the  increase  of  irreligion  and  crime,  as  remarked, 
have  occasioned  me  man}'  sad  hours.  Neverthe- 
less I  have  found  consolation  and  courage  in  the 
thought : 

'So  long  as  Christ  protects  His  Church, 
May  hell  its  rage  continue ;' 

and  I  held  fast  to  my  faith,  convinced  that  truth 
and  religion  will  at  last  mightily  raise  up  their 
head  and  prevail. 

''  The  congregations  at  the  Catawba  River  are 
without  a  preacher.  The  faithful  brother,  Ahrend, 
has  become  totally  blind.  It  is  a  sad  calamity'  for 
that  good  man  and  the  churches.  The  Buffalo 
Creek  congregation  (St.  John's)  is  likewise  unpro- 
vided for;  however,  it  has  at  present  the  hope  of 
obtaining  the  services  of  a  brother  of  Paul  Henkel, 
the  successor  of  our  Roschen.  Rev.  Bernhardt 
has  left  his  situation  in  Guilford,  and  is  now  serv- 
ing for  the  past  two  years  several  congregations 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  849 

in  South  Carolina.  The  congregations  in  Guil- 
ford County  are  now  served  by  a  son  of  Rev.  Paul 
Henkel.  Rev.  Magister  Faber  has  resigned  his 
pastoral  office  in  Charleston  some  three  years  ago; 
the  congregation  has  extended  a  call  to  me,  con- 
nected with  very  favorable  offers;  but  I  could  not 
accept  it.  Mr.  Faber  continues  to  preach  for  them 
as  long  as  the  congregation  has  no  other  pastor. 
I  am  rejoiced  that  Pastor  Roschen  has  again  been 
appointed  to  a  charge  (in  Germany),  and  I  heartily 
wish  that,  with  enduring  health,  he  may  long  con- 
tinue to  be  useful  to  the  Church." 

During  this  period  the  German  Reformed  Church 
in  South  Carolina  commenced  to  decline;  all  the 
old  ministers  had  departed  this  life,  and  no  new 
pastors  were  obtained  to  take  charge  of  the  vacant 
churches.  The  Rev.  A.  Loretz,  from  ITorth  Caro- 
lina, and  perhaps  some  others,  visited  these  con- 
gregations about  once  or  twice  a  year,  preached, 
and  administered  the  sacraments;  but  as  the  jour- 
ney always  embraced  several  hundred  miles,  and 
was  made  with  much  difficulty  at  that  time,  these 
visits  became  less  frequent  from  time  to  time, 
until  they  ceased  entirely,  and  the  denomination 
became  extinct  in  that  State ;  the  members  were 
at  length  absorbed  by  other  professions  of  faith,  a 
large  proportion  of  which  connected  themselves 
with  the  Lutheran  Church,  particularly  where  the 
houses  of  worship  were  held  jointly  by  Lutheran 
and  German  Reformed  congregations. 


350  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 


Section  11.  The  great  religious  revival  of  the  years 
1800  and  1801^  ivhich  swept  over  the  United 
States  ;  reports  of  Rev.  Storch  and  Henkel  con- 
cerning it. 

On  the  subject  of  revivals  the  opinion  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  of  America  has  been,  and  is  still, 
divided,  both  as  to  whether  such  revivals  are  right 
or  wrong  in  themselves,  and  again,  among  those 
who  favor  these  revivals,  as  to  the  proper  mode  of 
conducting  them. 

These  revivals  of  religion,  that  is  to  say,  what  is 
generally  understood  by  that  name,  so  far  as  the 
Lutheran  Church  is  concerned,  are  purely  an 
American  feature,  ingrafted  upon  a  portion  of  the 
Luthei'an  Church  in  this  country,  and  has  nothing 
in  common  with  what  is  called  ^^  Fietisrn'^  in  Ger- 
many. 

At  this  late  period  of  time,  and  with  an  experi- 
ence of  more  than  half  a  century,  the  Church  can- 
not be  regarded  an  uninformed  stranger  to  this 
"new  measure;"  the  opinion  of  all  our  ministers 
and  members  is  now  generally  confirmed  as  to  the 
eftects  of  these  revivals. 

'Not  desiring  to  discuss  the  merits  of  this  re- 
vival question  at  this  point  of  the  history  of  our 
Church  in  the  Carolinas,  because  it  would  be  out 
of  place  in  point  of  time,  revivals  not  having  been 
then  introduced  in  our  churches,  it  is,  nevertheless, 
peculiarly  interesting  to  read  what  our  forefathers 
thought  of  them   more  than  seventy  years  ago, 


TN   KORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  351 

when  the  great  revival  of  1800  and  1801  swept 
over  this  entire  countrj',  and  the  subject  was  pre- 
sented to  their  minds  for  the  first  time. 

Rev.  Storch  writes :  "By  the  side  of  this  pesti- 
lence (infidelity),  there  prevails  now,  for  over  a 
year,  a  something,  I  know  not  what  to  name  it, 
and  I  should  not  like  to  say  Fanaticism,  Christians 
of  every  denomination  assemble  themselves  in  the 
forest,  numbering  four,  six  and  sometimes  ten 
thousand  persons;  they  erect  tents,  sing,  pray  and 
preach,  day  and  night,  for  five,  six  and  eight  days. 
I  have  been  an  eye-witness  to  scenes  in  such  large 
assemblies,  which  I  cannot  explain.  I  beheld 
young  and  old,  feeble  and  strong,  white  and  black, 
in  short,  people  of  ever}^  age,  position  and  circum- 
stances, as  though  they  were  struck  by  lightning, 
speechless  and  motionless;  and,  when  they  had 
somewhat  recovered,  they  could  be  heard  shriek- 
ing bitterly,  and  supplicating  Grod  for  mercy  and 
grace. 

"After  they  had  thus  spent  three,  and  many 
even  more,  hours,  they  rose  up,  praised  God,  and 
commenced  to  pray  in  such  a  manner,  as  they  never 
were  wont  to  do,  exhorting  sinners  to  come  to 
Jesus,  &c.  Many  of  those,  who  were  thus  exer- 
cised, were  ungodly  persons  before,  and  we  can 
now  discover  a  remarkable  change  in  them.  Even 
deists  have  been  brought  to  confess  Christ  in  this 
way.    Thus  this  thing  continues  even  to  this  hour. 

"Opinions  are  various  in  regard  to  it;  many, 
even  ministers,  denominate  it  the  work  of  the 
devil ;  others  again  would  explain  it  in  a  natural 


352  THE   LUTHERAN  CHURCH 

way,  or  in  accordance  with  some  physical  law; 
whilst  others  look  upon  it  as  the  work  of  God. 
Please  give  me  your  opinion  and  explanation. 
This  thing  has  occasioned  me  no  little  uneasiness. 
In  our  German  congregations  nothing  of  this  kind 
has  yet  been  manifested.  Besides  that,  it  is  not 
known  to  me  that  something  like  it  has  taken 
place  in  Germany;  but  in  England  and  Ireland 
there  are  similar  occurrences.  The  inclosed  pub- 
lished accounts  will,  therefore,  not  be  uninterest- 
ing to  y(5u ;  the  facts  are  like  those  which  I  have 
seen  myself.  The  authors  of  these  accounts  are 
generally  respectable  men  and  worthy  of  belief." 

This  account  of  Rev.  Storch,  dated  February 
25th,  1803,  was  sent  to  Eev.  Dr.  Velthusen  in  Ger- 
many, who  published  it  in  his  "  Maurerey  und 
Christenthum  Gegeneinanderuebergestellt,"  vol.  i, 
pp.  64-70. 

In  the  German  minutes  of  a  Yirs^inia  Conference, 
held  in  1806,  in  the  new  Roeder's  Church,  in  Rock- 
ingham County,  Rev.  Paul  Henkel  writes  on  this 
subject  as  follows : 

"Towards  the  close  of  the  year  1801,  there  oc- 
curred a  mighty  waking  up  of  religion  among  the 
English  people  in  Guilford  and  Orange  Counties, 
which  caused  our  German  people  to  understand 
the  true  worth  of  the  gospel.  Both  the  pastors 
and  their  people  were  surprised,  for  it  appeared 
exceedingly  strange  to  those,  who  were  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  order  of  salvation,  that  true  con- 
version should  consist  in  such  a  way  as  declared 
by  these  people;  that  true  faith  should  originate 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  353 

ill  such  sermons,  which  caused  such  corporeal  con- 
vulsions, such  representations  of  the  devil,  death 
and  hell ;  the  fearful  and  awful  expressions  of  light- 
ning, thunder,  hail,  tire  and  brimstone  against 
the  sinner  deprived  many  of  their  senses,  and 
prostrated  them  in  fainting  fits. 

"As  the  like  proceedings  were  upheld  and  de- 
fended by  so  many  English  preachers,  and  as 
many  had  declared,  that  by  means  of  such  work- 
ings they  had  received  the  true  and  reliable  wit- 
ness of  the  pardon  of  their  sins  and  of  the  new 
birth,  many  of  us  hesitated  to  contradict  such 
proceedings,  although  they  were  thought  so  con- 
trary to  the  doctrines  of  the  gospeU  Many  pas- 
sages of  Scripture  were  pointed  out  as  opposed  to 
these  outward  manifestations;  but  many  good- 
meaning  persons  defended  them  as  scriptural, 
whereupon  the  important  question  arose  among 
them:  'Must  we  not  also  experience  the  same 
thing  in  order  to  be  saved?'  The  people  became 
anxious  and  concerned,  were  much  affected  and 
distressed,  pressed  upon  their  pastors  to  decide 
this  matter  for  them,  who  were  unwilling  to  do 
this  without  due  consideration  and  the  fullest  as- 
surance. 

"The  German  ministers  were  at  first  divided  in 
their  opinions  on  this  subject;  nevertheless,  it 
drove  them  to  more  intimate  communion  with 
each  other  in  their  official  acts,  and  they  had  thus 
the  opportunity  to  investigate  this  matter  more 
closely.  The  Lutheran  pastors  (of  ;N"orth  Caro- 
lina) formed  themselves  into  a  Conference  (Synod), 

30 


354  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

in  wliich  tLej  and  tlie  laj-  delegates  transacted  the 
usual  business  of  the  Church  as  in  other  States. 
Each  pastor  concluded  that  he  would  not  bear  the 
name  of  an  evangelical  minister  in  vain;  conse- 
quently the  Gospel  was  preached  industriously  and 
earnestly. 

"The  two  young  pastors,  Revs.  Dieffenbach  and 
Henkel,  were  surrounded  by  the  fire.  Many  as- 
saults were  made  upon  them  and  their  congrega- 
tions. But  they  always  stood  in  good  understand- 
ing with  each  other,  and  unitedly  taught  the  same 
doctrine,  consequently  their  congregations  were 
edified  on  both  sides.  Better  order  was  obtained 
among  the  y5uth;  however,  the  churches  greatly 
lamented  that  Rev.  Philip  Henkel  felt  constrained 
to  leave  them.  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller,  an  English  Lu- 
theran minister,  preaches  the  gospel  orderly,  with 
effect,  earnestness  and  due  consideration.  He 
was  also  much  assailed  in  his  teachings  by  those 
w^ho  sought  to  excite  the  people  to  these  extraor- 
dinary manifestations  of  body.  Having  been  or- 
dained by  our  German  brethren,  he  stands  in 
regular  connection  with  them,  and  always  defends 
the  doctrines  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  a  rational 
and  acceptable  manner." 

The  Rev.  Dieftenbach,  alluded  to  in  the  above 
report,  was  a  minister  of  the  German  Reformed 
Church. 


IK  NOHTH   AND  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  855 

Section  12.  Organization  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran 
Synod  of  North  Carolina^  A,D.  180S, 

It  is  iK/t  known  precisely  at  what  time  the  Helm- 
staedt  Miasion  Society  either  became  disbanded,  or 
ceased  to  labor  for  the  welfare  of  the  mission  field 
in  ^N'orth  Carolina.  In  the  year  1788,  Professor 
Eliigel  was  called  from  the  University  of  llelra- 
staedt  to  a  professorship  in  the  University  of 
Halle.  In  171*0  we  find  Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen  a 
resident  of  Rostock,  as  Obevkirckenrath  in  the 
Grand  Duchy  of  Mecklenburg,  an  office  similar 
to  that  of  superintendent  or  bishop;  and  also 
Professor  of  Theology  in  the  same  place.  Dr. 
Velthusen,  nevertheless,  continued  to  labor  in  the 
interest  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  l^Torth  Caro- 
lina, after  his  removal  to  Rostock;  but  the  impres- 
sion is,  that  owing  to  these,  and  perhaps  other 
changes,  the  Ilelmstaedt  Mission  Society  ceased 
to  exist,  and  the  Lutheran  churches  in  the  State 
were  necessitated  to  struggle  on  unaided  by  the 
parent  Church  in  Europe.  Correspondence  was 
continued  for  some  time  between  Rev.  Storch  and 
Dr.  Velthusen  as  late  as  1803,  which  is  proved  by 
a  published  letter  of  Rev.  Storch,  and  inserted  in 
the  preceding  section;  but  the  fact,  tljat  it  was 
published  in  one  of  Dr.  Velthusen's  individual 
works,  and  not  in  a  Helmstaedt  Report,  indicates 
that  the  Society  was  then  no  more. 

Rev.  Dr.  Velthusen  was  a  most  learned  man 
and  a  voluminous  writer.  He  was  raised  to  high 
positions   in   the  Lutheran  Church  in  Germany. 


356  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

"We  find,  that  oven  in  Home's  Introduction,  a 
work  placed  in  tlie  hands  of  every  English  theo- 
logical student.  Dr.  Velthusen's  name  occurs  as 
one  of  the  authorities  referred  to  and  consulted 
by  Dr.  Home. 

The  North  Carolina  Lutheran  ministry,  having 
now  no  dependence  upon  which  they  could  rely 
other  than  their  own  efforts,  and  having  been  re- 
inforced by  a  number  of  ministers,  in  that  tield, 
but  chiefly,  on  account  of  the  anxiety  of  inquir- 
ing souls  and  the  distracted  state  of  the  Church, 
caused  by  the  breaking  out  of  the  revival  of  1801, 
resolved  to  labor  more  unitedly  and  in  an  organ- 
ized capacity,  and  hence  originated  the  North 
Carolina  Synod  or  Conference,  for  so  were  Synods 
then  sometimes  denominated  by  our  German  min- 
isters. This  Conference  or  Synod  stood  under  no 
jurisdiction  of  any  other  or  higher  ecclesiastical 
body,  but  had  the  power  to  exercise  sole  juris- 
diction for  itself  from  its  commencement;  "in 
which,"  says  Rev.  Paul  Henkel  in  1806,  "they 
and  the  lay  delegates  transacted  the  usual  business 
of  the  Church  as  in  other  States." 

The  Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina  felt 
the  necessity  of  organizing  a  Synod,  in  order  to 
labor  for  its  continuance  and  future  prosperity, 
for  there  was  no  Lutheran  Synod  in  all  the  South- 
ern States.  The  Pennsylvania  Synod,  which  is 
the  oldest  Lutheran  S3'nod  in  America,  never  ex- 
tended its  jurisdiction  farther  south  than  Virginia. 
All  the  Lutheran  churches  south  of  that  State,  had 
been  either  under  the  care  of  a  mission  society  in 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  357 

Gerniaiiy,  or  stood  in  an  independent  position. 
The  organization  of  the  Corpus  Ecclesiasticum  in 
South  Carolina  was  the  only  previous  attempt  to 
bring  the  German  congregations  under  the  care 
of  an  organized  ecclesiastical  union,  but  had  ceased 
to  exist  several  years  before  the  I^orth  Carolina 
Synod  was  formed.  Hence  the  Lutheran  ministry 
in  iN^orth  Carolina  were  impressed  with  the  neces- 
sity and  advantage  of  concentrated  and  organized 
labor  for  the  welfare  of  the  Church  in  a  synodical 
body. 

In  the  address  to  the  congregations,  published 
in  the  first  minutes  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod, 
the  following  excellent  thoughts  occur:  "That 
which  you  herewith  receive  for  3'our  perusal  and 
contemplation  is  to  show  you  what  we,  your 
teachers  and  delegates  in  Conference  assembled, 
have  considered,  resolved,  and  shall  endeavor  to 
introduce  as  rules  of  order  for  the  welfare  of  our 
Church  and  the  furtherance  of  true  godliness.  In 
this  we  have  acted  according  to  our  best  under- 
standing. Ye  yourselves  will  know,  that  it  is 
necessary,  if  the  Christian  Church  is  to  be  per- 
petuated, that  order  must  be  preserved  both 
among  the  ministers  and  in  the  congregations. 
Dear  brethren,  we  look  to  you  to  assist  us  in  this 
noble  undertaking.  God's  work  calls  for  help; 
the  condition  of  our  Church  and  people  calls  for 
help;  the  condition  of  thousands,  both  of  old  and 
young,  calls  for  help;  and  shall  this  call  of  God 
and  the  cry  of  so  many  immortal  souls  not  be 
heard  at  all,  or  heard  in  vain?     We  have  no  fear 


358  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  it,  but  are  assured  that  your  heart  and  mind 
will  be  united  with  us  in  so  praiseworthy  an  un- 
dertaking, so  that  the  instructions  and  quickening 
influence  of  the  Gospel  may  be  brought  to  many 
thousands  of  souls,  who  have  hitherto  been  neces- 
sarily deprived  of  the  same."  Signed  by  Robert 
J.  Miller,  Carl  Storch,  Paulus  Henkel,  Christo- 
pher Bernhardt,  Philip  Henkel,  Ludwig  Markert. 

The  first  session  of  the  ]N'orth  Carolina  Synod 
was  held  in  the  town  of  Salisbury,  on  Monday, 
May  2d,  1803.  On  the  preceding  Saturday  and 
Sunday,  the  ministers  held' Divine  service  and  ad- 
ministered the  holy  communion  to  a  large  assem- 
bly in  Pine  (Union)  Church,  four  miles  from  Sal- 
isbury. 

The  names  of  the  ministers  present  at  that  first 
Synod  were:  Hev.  Gottfried  Arndt,  of  Lincoln 
County ;  Rev.  Robert  J.  Miller,  of  the  same  county ; 
Rev.  Carl  A.  G.  Storch,  near  Salisbury;  Rev. 
Paul  Henkel,  from  Abbot's  Creek,  Rowan  (David- 
son) County.  These  ministers,  with  a  number  of 
elders  and  deacons  from  most  of  the  congrega- 
tions as  lay  representatives,  formed  the  Il^orth 
Carolina  Synod,  which  is  the  oldest  Lutheran 
Synod  in  the  Southern  States,  and  the  third  Synod 
in  America  in  point  of  time,  the  Pennsylvania  and 
]S'ew  York  Synods  having  preceded  it  in  their  or- 
ganization. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  359 


CHAPTER  lY. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  LUTHERAN  CHURCH  IN  THE  CARO- 
LINAS  CONTINUED,  FROM  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  SYNOD,  A.D.  1803,  TO 
THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  FIRST  LUTHERAN  GEN- 
ERAL SYNOD  IN  AMERICA,  A.D.  1820,  EMBRAC- 
ING   A    PERIOD    OF    SEVENTEEN    YEARS. 

Section  1.    Condition   of  the   Lutheran    Church  in 
South  Carolina  in  the  year  180S, 

We  how  come  to  the  dark  period  of  the  Luth- 
eran Church  in  South  Carolina,  a  period  frequently 
spoken  of  and  greatly  lamented  by  the  aged  min- 
isters and  laymen  of  our  Church  in  the  presence 
of  the  writer  some  twenty  or  more  years  ago,  when 
such  men  as  Revs.  Michael  Ranch  and  George 
Haltiwanger,  Sr.,  were  still  living,  whose  memory 
is  yet  fondly  cherished  in  the  Church. 

All  the  early  pastors,  who  came  from  the  Father- 
land, were  dead.  Revs.  Martin,  Daser,  Thcus, 
Hochheimer,  Froelich,  Bamberg,  Friederichs, 
Wallberg,  and  others  were  gathered  to  their 
fathers,  and,  with  the  single  exception  of  the  send- 
ing of  pastors  to  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Charles- 
ton, no  reinforcement  of  ministers  came  any  longer 


3G0  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

from  Germany  to  South  Carolina,  and  the  German 
congregations  were  generally  fast  going  to  destruc- 
tion. Proselyting  sects  were  only  too  industriously 
engaged  in  gathering  the  scattered  members  of 
our  churches  into  their  fold,  and  some  once  flour- 
ishing German  congregations  became  irretrievably 
lost  to  the  Church  of  their  fathers.  The  only  sur- 
vivor of  the  Corpus  Evangelicum  was  the  Rev. 
Frederick  Joseph  Wallern  in  Il^ewberry  District. 
Here  and  there  exhorters  arose  in  the  various 
vacant  congregations,  but  they  were  men  of  very 
limited  education,  though  zealous  and  active,  and, 
with  their  restricted  influence,  they  could  do  but 
little  more  than  preserve  a  spark  of  vitality  in  a 
few  scattering  churches,  which  were  glad  enough 
to  be  served  with  such  ministrations  as  these  ex- 
horters could  bestow  upon  them. 

A  brief  review  of  the  condition  of  the  several 
pastoral  charges  in  South  Carolina  will  manifest 
the  truth  of  the  above  statement,  and  will  indicate 
how  sad  and  mournful  was  the  state  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  at  that  time,  and  as  far  as  the  Ger- 
man Reformed  Church  is  concerned,  it  had  then 
almost  ceased  to  exist. 

St.  John's  Church  in  Charleston  was  vacant  at 
this  time;  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Faber  was  still  living, 
but  his  health  had  declined,  and  was  therefore 
necessitated  to  resign  his  charge,  merely  serving 
it  as  a  temporary  supply,  and  as  far  as  his  strength 
would  allow,  until  some  other  pastor  could  be 
obtained.  The  congregation  extended  a  pressing 
call  to  Rev.  Storch  of  JSTorth  Carolina,  which  he, 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  3G1 

however,  was  obliged  to  decline,  on  account  of  his 
own  feeble  health  and  the  wants  of  the  Church  in 
that  State.  "In  February,  1805,  the  Rev.  M.  T. 
Charles  Faber,  a  younger  brother  of  the  former 
pastor,  arrived  from  Bremen,  and  became  the  pas- 
tor of  this  church.  He  resigned  in  1811,  and  soon 
afterwards  died  of  the  yellow  fever.  Ministers 
from  other  denominations  were  now  engaged  for 
a  term  of  six  months  only,  according  to  a  rule  of 
the  church,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Spieren,  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Darnielle,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Best,  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Hanckel,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Mills,  all  ministers  of 
the  Episcopal  Church,  at  different  periods  supplied 
the  congregation.  They  received  the  same  remu- 
neration as  if  they  had  been  stated  ministers." 

The  Lutheran  churches  in  Barnwell  District 
were  likewise  in  a  sad  condition,  as  about  this 
time,  A.D.  1803  or  4,  their  beloved  and  efficient 
pastor,  the  Rev.  J.  Gr.  Bamberg,  departed  this  life, 
and  they  engaged  the  services  of  a  certain  John 
Henry  Graff,  a  native  of  Saxony,  who  had  been 
ordained  to  the  gospel  ministry  in  1800,  by  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Wallern  of  Newberry  District.  Graff 
continued  to  "  work  at  his  trade,  being  a  shoe- 
maker, to  support  his  family,"  and,  as  might  be 
expected,  accomplished  very  little  good,  except 
that  the  churches  did  not  become  entirely  extinct. 

St.  Matthew's  Church  or  pastorate,  in  Orange- 
burg District,  fared  very  little  better ;  the  liev.  J. 
P.  Franklow,  who  said,  that  he  had  obtained  license 
to  preach  and  baptize  from  the  bishop  of  the  Epis- 
copal Church  residing  in  Charleston,  in  the  year. 

31 


362  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

1798,  but  who  was  afterwards  licensed  by  the 
ITorth  Carolina  Synod  in  1812,  and  subsequently 
ordained  by  the  same  body  at  its  next  session, 
served  this  charge  from  1799  to  1814,  but  whether 
he  administered  the  Lord's  Supper,  previous  to  his 
licensure  and  ordination  by  the  Xorth  Carolina 
Synod,  is  not  known. 

The  Sandy  Run  Church  had  no  pastor  at  all  at 
this  time,  but  was  visited  by  Revs.  Franklow  and 
Bernhardt;  the  latter  officiated  there  only  every 
recurring  fifth  Sunday  in  the  month,  consequently 
this  congregation  enjoyed  the  services  of  a  regu- 
larly ordained  ministry  only  four  times  a  year,  for 
a  long  period  of  time,  and  had  gone  down  to  such 
an  extent,  that  it  was  necessary  to  reorganize  the 
congregation  on  the  29th  of  December,  1811. 

The  Lutheran  congregations,  located  on  both 
sides  of  the  Saluda  River  in  Lexington  District, 
were  more  fortunate  in  securing  the  services  of  a 
succession  of  pastors.  A  year  or  so  after  the  res- 
ignation of  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Bamberg,  who  removed 
to  Barnwell  District  in  1798,  the  Rev.  John  Nicho- 
las Marcard,  who  came  from  St.  John's  Church  in 
Cabarrus  County,  iS'orth  Carolina,  became  the 
pastor  of  the  Saluda  charge,  but  he  did  not  labor 
long  in  that  portion  of  the  Lord's  vineyard; 
whether  he  died  or  moved  away  is  not  known. 
At  the  close  of  the  year  1800,  the  Rev.  C.  E. 
Bernhardt,  from  Guilford  County,  North  Carolina, 
became  the  pastor  of  the  Saluda  churches,  and 
labored  there  to  the  close  of  his  life.  He  died 
■  August  27th,  1809.     He  had  charge  of  four  con- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  863 

gregations  :  Zion's,  Bethel,  St.  Peter's,  and  Salem 
Church  on  Hollow  Creek.  He  was  buried  near 
his  residence,  about  one  mile  distant  from  the 
present  St.  Michael's  Church;  no  tombstone,  but 
some  dogwood  trees  mark  the  spot,  where  repose 
the  remains  of  this  faithful  servant  of  God.  These 
churches  have  always  continued  in  a  prosperous 
state  to  the  present  time,  one  of  which,  Zion's,  had 
an  organ  to  assist  in  the  musical  part  of  divine 
worship,  as  the  records  indicate,  which  is,  perhaps, 
still  remaining  in  the  church,  but  not  now  in  use. 
In  1805,  the  organ  was  put  in  repair  by  a  gentle- 
man from  Ninety-six  District,  who  was  paid  for 
his  services  by  an  amount  raised  by  subscription. 
In  1797,  the  congregation  petitioned  the  State  leg- 
islature to  grant  them  the  privilege  of  establishing 
a  public  ferry  on  the  Saluda  liiver,  "  for  the  con- 
venience and  use  of  the  church  members  on  the 
Sabbath-day,  when  they  attend  divine  service;  and 
for  passengers,  in  order  to  receive  funds  for  the 
support  of  the  church  in  paying  the  minister's 
salary,  &c.,  as  the  funds  were  not  adequate  to  the 
wants  of  the  church,  for  the  property  consisted 
only  in  land,  and  the  members  were  too  poor  to 
defray  the  ordinary  church  expenses."  "In  April 
25th,  1802,  a  subscription  was  taken  to  complete 
the  church,  that  is,  to  lath  and  plaster  it,  to  wains- 
cot the  pews  and  window  shutters,  and  to  paint 
the  outside  of  the  church."  The  above  is  an  ex- 
tract from  the  church-book. 

Rev.  R.  J.  Miller,  in  his  missionary  report,  under 
date  of  November  19th,  1811,  speaks  very  highly 


864  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  the  Saluda  congregations,  as  follows:  ''From 
Hollow  Creek  Church,  called  Salem,  I  preached 
through  all  the  German  congregations  in  the  neigh- 
borhood until  the  28th.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  labor 
here;  the  people  love  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  and  his 
servants." 

Rev.  Wallern  labored  as  pastor  in  dewberry 
District,  and  a  Rev.  Mr.  Winckhouse,  who  after- 
wards preached  occasionally  in  the  Saluda  charge, 
made  vacant  by  the  death  of  Rev.  C.  E.  Bernhardt, 
was  also  a  resident  of  the  same  District;  but  when 
he  commenced  and  ended  his  labors  in  Newberry 
is  not  known  to  the  writer.  By  means  of  the 
labors  of  Revs.  Wallern  and  Winckhouse  the  New- 
berr}^  churches  were  preserved  from  annihilation, 
although  Rev.  Wallern  was  a  worldly-minded  man, 
and  attended  industriously  to  his  planting  and 
other  worldly  interests,  as  is  still  reported  of  him, 
and  at  which  the  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  hints,  when  he 
said  in  his  missionary  report:  ''I  went  to  the  Lu- 
theran minister,  Wallern ;  found  him  about  his 
farming  business;  conversed  that  evening  and  the 
following  day  much  with  him  on  the  state  of  the 
Church,  of  religion,  and  on  other  subjects,  and 
found  him  a  man  acquainted  with  the  world." 

The  German  congregations  in  Abbeville  Dis- 
trict had  a  sad  history  at  this  time.  St.  George's 
Lutheran  Church  on  Hard  Labor  Creek  was  also 
visited  by  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  in  his  missionary  tour 
in  1811,  and  the  following  is  his  report  concerning 
this  church: 

"Sunday,  ISTovember  10th.  I  preached  in  a  Ger- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  365 

man  meetiiig-hoiise  on  Hard  Labor  Creek,  where 
my  appointments  were  to  commence;  here  was 
formerly  a  Lutheran  congregation,  but  no  remains 
of  it  are  now  to  be  found;  here  the  Methodists  and 
Baptists  have  pulled  each  other  out  of  the  pulpit. 
Every  person  seemed  very  attentive;  here  is  full 
proof  of  the  necessity  of  missionary  preaching. 
The  former  Lutheran  minister  became  a  Method- 
ist." 

The  other  German  congregation  in  this  District, 
incorporated  under  the  title  of  "The  Charlotte 
Church,  on  Slippery  Creek,  ]^inety-six  District," 
has  no  other  now  known  history,  except  that  of 
its  incorporation  by  the  State  legislature. 

When  we  consider  all  these  facts,  relating  to 
the  condition  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  South 
Carolina  at  that  time,  and  gathered  from  the  re- 
ports of  the  then  living  witnesses,  we  need  not  be 
astonished  that  a  number  of  the  German  cono^re- 
gations  in  that  State  became  entirely  extinct;  but 
the  greater  wonder  is,  that  so  many  of  those  con- 
gregations struggled  on  and  continued  to  live 
through  that  dark  and  trying  period.  The  few 
charges  that  were  blessed  with  the  continued  and 
faithful  services  of  the  Gospel  ministry  were  pre- 
served in  a  flourishing  condition,  proving  fully, 
that  nothing  but  the  faithful  and  proper  adminis- 
tration of  the  word  and  the  sacraments  can  pre- 
serve the  Church,  and  promote  its  welfare. 


366  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 


Section  2.  HenkeVs  Report  on  the  Condition  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina  in  the  year 
1806. 

From  the  German  minutes  of  a  Virginia  Confer- 
ence, held  in  the  ]N'ew  Roeder's  Church,  in  Rock- 
ingham County,  A.D.  1806,  and  published  by  the 
Rev.  Paul  Henkel,  we  gather  the  following  inter- 
esting account  of  the  condition  of  all  the  Lutheran 
congregations  in  the  State  of  JN'orth  Carolina  at 
that  time.     Rev.  Henkel  writes : 

"As  soon  as  the  Germans  had  located  them- 
selves in  different  parts  of  North  Carolina,  they 
became  concerned  about  the  regular  administra- 
tion of  Church  worship  and  ordinances  in  their 
midst.  They  soon  erected  houses  of  worship  ac- 
cording to  their  ability,  which  were  generally  the 
joint  property  of  both  the  Lutheran  and  German 
Reformed  Christians. 

"In  that  region,  which  lies  partly  in  Orange  and 
partly  in  Guilford  Counties,  there  are  three  Lu- 
theran and  three  Reformed  churches,  besides  one 
other  joint-church,  named  Frieden's,  which  is 
served  in  connection  with  the  others.  Since  the 
year  1801,  Rev.  Henry  Dieffenbach  has  served  the 
Reformed  churches,  and  in  the  same  year  Rev. 
Pliilip  Henkel  was  called  to  serve  as  Lutheran 
pastor,  who  remained  there  until  1806,  when  he 
accepted  a  call  to  an  enlarged  field  of  labor  in 
Lincoln  County. 

"Li  Rowan  County  (now  Davidson)  on  Abbot's 


m   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  367 

Creek,  we  find  three  joint  and  one  Lutheran 
church  on  the  Sandhills.  These  were  served  by 
the  Rev.  Paul  Henkel  from  the  year  1800  to  1805, 
when  he  was  necessitated  to  resign  this  charge,  on 
account  of  the  failure  of  his  own  and  his  family's 
health ;  he  therefore  introduced  the  Rev.  Ludwig 
Markert  as  candidate  preacher  into  these  congre- 
gations, which  he  was  himself  compelled  to  leave. 

"In  the  vicinity  of  Salisbury,  Rowan  County, 
there  are  three  strong  Lutheran  congregations, 
which  have  been  served  by  the  Rev.  Charles  Storch 
for  nearl}^  twenty  years;  but  under  main^  disad- 
vantages on  account  of  the  frequent  and  severe 
attacks  of  fever,  which  prostrated  his  energies  for 
the  last  ten  years,  and  which  apparently  had  sev- 
eral times  brought  him  near  to  the  grave.  His 
numerous  official  duties  la}^  often  heavy  upon  him 
on  account  of  his  ill-health,  especially  the  admin- 
istration of  the  Lord's  Supper  to  two  hundred  and 
fifty  communicants  at  one  time,  so  that  his  feeble 
powers  of  body  were  always  exhausted  after  hav- 
ing served  all  these  people.  Some  twenty  years 
past,  there  was  a  tolerably  strong  German  congre- 
gation in  Salisbury;  they  had  erected  a  com- 
fortable church  for  themselves,  but  as  the  Ger- 
man people  and  their  language  were  changed  into 
English,  the  German  worship  soon  became  ex- 
tinct. 

"i^ear  Bufiiilo  Creek,  Cabarrus  County,  we  find 
one  of  the  strongest  German  Lutheran  churches 
in  the  whole  State;  however,  since  the  death  of 
their    former    pastor.    Rev.    Adolph   i^ussmann, 


368  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

which  occurred  some  twelve  years  ago,  the  con- 
gregation has  suffered  much,  as  it  is  now  served  by 
Eev.  Storch,  who  moved  a  httle  nearer  to  this 
congregation.  In  the  year  1803.  the  Rev.  John 
Henkel  had  been  unanimously  chosen  as  the  pastor 
of  this  church,  and  consented  to  serve  them;  lie 
made  the  necessary  arrangements  to  move  his 
family  from  Virginia,  but  whilst  the  people  were 
waiting  for  the  intelligence  when  they  should  send 
for  him,  they  received  the  message  that  the  Lord 
had  called  him  to  his  home.  This  was  sad  news,  not 
only  to  the  congregation,  but  likewise  to  the  re- 
maining ministers  in  the  State,  who  lamented  the 
w^ant  of  so  many  faithful  laborers  in  the  Lord's 
vineyard.  Th'e  few  sermons  Rev.  H.  preached, 
whilst  on  a  visit  to  that  church,  w^ill  long  be  re- 
membered. It  is  rejoicing  to  know,  that  this  peo- 
ple are  now  blessed  with  the  labors  of  so  faithful 
a  pastor. 

"About  eighteen  miles  from  Salisbury  there  is 
another  church,  which  was  built  by  the  Germans 
as  a  joint  house  of  worship,  but  as  they  are  so 
much  intermingled  with  English  settlers,  this 
German  congregation  will  also  become  extinct. 
Many  English  residents  had  become  members  of 
this  church.  During  the  visits  of  Rev.  Paul 
Henkel  in  the  fall  season,  from  1785  to  1789,  many 
adult  and  aged  persons  v/ere  baptized,  instructed 
and  confirmed,  and  thus  a  very  strong  congrega- 
tion was  gathered.  Much  experimental  Christi- 
anity was  supposed  to  exist  here;  however,  hope- 
ful as  appearances  were  outwardly,  they  were  never- 


IN    NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  369 

theless  of  short  duration;  many  tore  themselves 
away  from  the  church,  and.  were  divided  into  diifer- 
ent  singuhir  persuasions.  The  Germans  became 
degenerated,  lead  disorderly  lives  with  these  other 
settlers,  so  that  at  this  time  a  perfect  Babel  exists; 
foolish  pride  and  many  vices  prevail.  The  few 
remaining  upright  souls  are  constrained  to  weep 
in  silence  over  this  desolation. 

"In  Lincoln  County  there  are  eight  or  nine 
congregations,  several  of  which  are  quite  large. 
All  these  have  erected  joint  houses  of  worship. 
The  Lutheran  congregations  were  served  by  the 
Rev.  Gottfried  Arndt  for  twenty  years.  Before 
that  time  he  had  labored  in  the  vicinity  of  Salis- 
bury, and  even  at  that  time  he  often  traveled 
among  these  churches,  and  performed  official 
duties,  as  far  as  his  circumstances  would  permit. 
He  labored  faithfully  in  his  calling  over  the  whole 
State,  wherever  he  could  lind  German  brethren. 
For  the  last  four  years  he  became  unfitted  for  his 
calling,  as  he  met  with  the  misfortune  of  losing 
his  eyesight  entirely.  He  is  at  present  quite  an 
aged  man,  and  were  it  not  for  his  misfortune,  he 
might  still  serve  in  his  holy  calling.  The  greater 
number  of  his  former  congregations  are  now 
served  by  Rev.  Philip  Henkel. 

"In  Burke  County  there  are  also  a  number  of 
Germans,  among  whom,  as  yet,  no  church  has 
been  built.  Rev.  Arndt  preached  there  several 
times,  so  also  did  the  Rev.  Paul  Henkel,  in  the 
German  and  English  languages,  during  his  visit 
through  that  county  in  1787.     In  May,  1804,  he 


370  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

made  another  visit  among  this  people  in  company 
with  the  German  Reformed  minister,  He  v.  Jacob 
Laros.  It  was  their  intention  to  preach  several 
da^^s  in  each  congregation,  but  in  this  they  v/ere 
hindered  by  the  many  rains  and  consequent  high 
waters,  so  that  eacli  of  them  could  preach  but  two 
sermons. 

''  In  Wilkes  County  may  be  found  a  small  Ger- 
man flock  in  the  wilderness,  surrounded  by  human 
beings,  who  know  of  nothing  so  little  as  of  tlie  true 
way  of  salvation,  and  who  in  their  own  opinions 
are  wiser  than  the  Bible  itself.  These  often  per- 
secuted the  members  of  this  little  flock.  Rev. 
Paul  Ilenkel  visited  them  twice  whilst  he  was  still 
living  in  Korth  Carolina.  During  his  last  visit  in 
1805,  he  instructed  and  confirmed  their  youth,  and 
administered  the  Lord's  Supper.  He  informed 
them  that  he  had  reason  to  believe  that  the  Lord 
was  in  their  midst.  As  it  concerns  the  spiritual 
condition  of  this  church,  it  may  be  truly  said  that 
here,  as  elsewhere,  many  having  neglected  to  em- 
brace their  opportunity,  are  still  strangers  to  that 
work  of  grace,  which  they  should  experience  iu 
their  hearts;  there  are  others  again  to  be  found, 
who  are  enlightened  by  something  better  than 
their  own  blind  reason,  who  seek  the  salvation  of 
their  souls  not  in  works,  but  in  the  merits  of  their 
Savior,  and  who  strive  with  all  their  hearts  to  be- 
come the  followers  of  Jesus.  In  this  place  not  so 
many  learned  and  feeling  sermons  have  been 
preached  as  in  other  congregations,  nevertheless, 
many  became  savingly  acquainted  with  the  doc- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  371 

trines  of  the  gospel  from  their  own  experience. 
The  labors  of  traveling  ministers  had  awakened 
attention  to  the  word;  serious  impressions  deeply 
affected  their  hearts,  which  resulted  in  much  good, 
and  enabled  many  to  declare  the  things  they  had 
experienced  in  their  own  hearts. 

"The  two  German  Reformed  preachers.  Revs. 
Jacob  Christman  and  Jacob  Laros,  who,  for  the 
last  two  years,  had  labored  in  the  State  of  Ohio, 
were,  at  the  time  above  mentioned,  residing  in 
Guilford  County.  As  soon  as  Rev.  J.  Christman 
was  ordained,  he  labored  in  various  localities  and 
performed  many  journeys.  He  was  peculiarly 
fitted  to  impart  private  instruction  in  families, 
which  duty  he  performed  industriously.  Rev.  J. 
Laros,  who  did  not  labor  so  extensively,  was  more 
successful  among  children  and  youth  in  schools 
and  catechetical  instruction  ;  he  was  always  very 
edifying  in  his  sermons,  and  his  exemplary  walk 
was  an  ornament  to  his  oflS-cial  duties."  (Here  fol- 
lows the  lengthy  report  on  the  revival  of  1801, 
which  has  been  given  in  the  11th  section  of  the 
preceding  chapter.) 

"The  Evangelical  Brethren,  that  is,  the  Mora- 
vians, have  five  German  and  one  English  church 
in  this  State.  Their  pastors  preach  the  gospel 
with  exemplary  order  and  propriety;  they  are 
always  friendly  in  their  deportment  towards  all 
other  orderly  pastors.  Among  these  brethren  may 
be  found  many  members,  who  are  well  acquainted 
withtruegodiinessand  experimental  Christianity." 


372  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Section  3.     Extract  from  the  First  Minutes  of  the 
North  Carolina  Synod,  from  A.D.  1803  to  1810. 

Immediately  upon  the  organization  of  the  Synod 
of  North  Carolina,  a  new  life  appears  to  have  been 
infused  into  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas; 
the  various  scattered  congregations  were  now 
brought  into  a  closer  relationship  with  each  other, 
a  uniform  church  discipline  was  introduced  with 
good  and  wholesome  effect,  arrangements  were 
made  to  supply  all  the  vacant  congregations  with 
the  means  of  grace,  and  the  scattered  members 
were  visited  by  missionaries  appointed  by  Synod, 
who  organized  new  congregations  wherever  it  was 
practicable.  However,  the  want  of  ministers  of 
the  Gospel  was  still  very  great,  and  in  order  to 
supply  this  demand,  pious  laymen  were  licensed 
as  catechets,  who  afterwards  became  candidates 
for  the  ministry;  in  this  way  originated  the  licen- 
sure system,  and  the  preparation  of  pious  young 
men  for  the  ministry  by  receiving  private  instruc- 
tion from  some  of  the  older  ministers;  this  arrange- 
ment afterwards  received  the  name  of  "the  home 
student  system."  The  most  urgent  necessity  de- 
manded this  departure  from  the  rule  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  the  Fatherland,  where  an  educa- 
tion at  the  University  was  necessar}-,  before  any  one 
could  be  admitted  to  the  gospel  ministrj^  and 
where  a  candidate  was  ordained  as  soon  as  he  had 
received  a  call  as  pastor  of  a  church,  without  having 
to  pass  through  a  state  of  licensed  probation. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  378 

All  the  Lutheran  ministers  residing  in  South 
Carolina  connected  themselves  with  the  newly  or- 
ganized !N'orth  Carolina  Synod,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  Rev.  Faber,  in  Charleston,  who  doubtless 
could  not  attend  this  or  any  other  Synod,  on  ac- 
count of  the  want  of  public  conveyances  at  that 
time,  and  the  great  distance  from  the  place  where 
the  Synod  usually  met;  also  the  Rev.  F.  J.  Wal- 
lern,  who  continued  to  remain  in  an  independent 
and  isolated  position  as  long  as  he  lived ;  what  his 
motives  were  for  so  doing  is  not  stated  in  the  re- 
ports of  the  Synod's  missionary,  who  visited  Rev. 
Wallern  and  his  congregations  in  1811. 

Rev.  C.  E.  Bernhardt,  who  labored  in  Lexing- 
ton District,  connected  himself  at  once  with  the 
North  Carolina  Synod,  and  labored  in  great  har- 
mony with  his  brethren  to  the  close  of  his  life. 
Rev.  J.  P.  Franklow  also  attended  the  meetings 
of  Synod,  and  was  licensed  by  that  body  at  its 
spring  session  of  1812,  and  ordained  the  same 
year  at  its  fall  session.  Rev.  Godfrey  Dreher  was 
presented  to  that  body  as  a  candidate  for  the  min- 
istry, October  23d,  1810,  when  he  was  licensed, 
and  was  afterwards  ordained  in  South  Carolina  in 
1812,  by  a  committee  appointed  by  Sj- nod  for  that 
purpose.  From  all  accounts  he  is  still  living, 
being  now  in  the  sixty-second  year  of  his  ministry, 
although  no  longer  able  to  perform  auj  official 
duty. 

Revs.  Michael  Ranch  and  J.  Y.  Meetze  appeared 
before  Synod  at  a  later  date;  they  were  both  li- 
censed October  19th,  1812,  at  Lau's  Church,  Guil- 


374  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

ford  County.  Rev.  Ranch  was  ordained  April 
28th,  1819,  at  St.  John's  Chnrch,  Cabarrus 
County;  but  Rev.  Meetze  was  not  ordained  until 
1822,  when  by  the  order  of  Synod  he  received  his 
ordination  in  South  Carolina.  All  these  Lutheran 
ministers,  residing  in  South  Carolina,  continued 
their  connection  with  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
until  1824,  at  which  time  the  Synod  of  South  Caro- 
lina was  organized. 

At  the  first  session  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod, 
held  in  Salisbury,  May  2d,  1808,  very  little  busi- 
ness was  transacted.  The  Synod  was  then  simply 
organized,  and  a  resolution  was  passed,  at  the  sug- 
gestion of  Rev.  Arndt,  that  Rev.  Paul  Henkel 
should  visit  Rev.  Arndt's  charge  in  Lincoln 
County  the  following  August,  in  order  to  perform 
the  necessary  ofiicial  duties,  to  which  Rev.  Arndt 
could  not  attend,  owing  to  the  loss  of  his  eyesight 
and  his  feeble  health.  Rev.  Henkel  attended  to 
this  duty. 

The  second  session  of  Synod  was  held  at 
Lincolnton,  K  C,  October  17th,  1803,  when  a 
constitution  was  adopted,  consisting  of  nine  arti- 
cles. They  are  much  the  same  as  are  generally 
adopted  by  all  Lutheran  Synods.  The  fourth  arti- 
cle requires  candidates  of  the  ministry  "to  under- 
stand the  order  of  the  Latin  language,  and  so 
much  of  Greek  as  to  be  able  to  understand  the 
New  Testament."  Rev.  J.  G.  Arndt  w^as  Presi- 
dent, and  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  was  Secretary  of  this 
synodical  convention. 

The  third  session  of  Svnod  was  held  at  Abbot's 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  375 

Creek  Church,  in  Davidson  County,  October  21st, 
1804.  Kev.  Paul  Henkel  was  elected  President, 
and  Rev.  Miller,  Secretary,  Very  little  business 
was  transacted  at  this  session  of  Synod,  because 
nearly  all  the  ministers  were  unfitted  for  duty 
on  account  of  sickness.  It  was  resolved  that 
a  special  conference  be  held  at  Pine  Church, 
Rowan  County,  the  following  April,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  ordaining  Rev.'  Philip  Henkel.  John 
Michael  Rueckert  and  Ludwig  Markert  were  li- 
censed as  catechets.  The  next  session  of  Synod 
was  held  at  Organ  Church,  Rowan  County,  Octo- 
ber 20th,  1806.  Rev.  Storch  was  chosen  Presi- 
dent, and  Rev.  Bernhardt,  Secretar3\ 

There  appears  to  have  been  no  meeting  of  Synod 
during  the  years  1807  and  1808,  doubtless  pre- 
vented by  the  prevailing  sickness  during  the  fall 
season. 

In  the  year  1809,  August  7th,  the  Synod  was 
convened  in  Guilford  County,  at  which  meeting 
some  additional  articles  were  added  to  the  consti- 
tution. The  officers  of  Synod  were.  Rev.  Charles 
A.  Storch,  President,  and  Rev.  Ludwig  Markert, 
Secretary. 

On  the  22d  of  October,  1810,  the  Synod  con- 
vened at  Organ  Church,  at  which  time  a  consid- 
erable amount  of  business  was  transacted.  The 
Rev.  C.  A.  Storch  was  re-elected  President,  and 
Rev.  Gottlieb  Schober  was  elected  Secretary.  At 
this  meeting  there  were  ten  ministers  present,  and 
the  names  of  the  lay  delegates  were  published  for 
the  first  time.     Rev.  G.  Schober  was  ordained  to 


376  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  gospel  ministry;  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Moravian  Church,  and  continued  in  connection 
with  that  Church  to  the  close  of  his  life,  neverthe- 
less, he  became  a  Lutheran  minister,  and  w^as 
pastor  of  several  Lutheran  congregations  in  the 
vicinity  of  Salem,  I^.  C,  where  he  resided,  and 
served  those  congregations  during  his  life.  Revs. 
Storch,  Miller  and  Philip  Henkel  officiated  at  his 
ordination.  » 

"On  motion  of  Rev.  Philip  Henkel,  it  was  re- 
solved that,  inasmuch  as  awakenings  arise  in  our 
days  by  means  of  three  days'  preaching,  and  the 
like  is  to  be  wished  among  our  brethren  in  the 
faith,  a  trial  of  such  preaching  be  made,  with  the 
proviso,  that  three  ministers  of  our  connection  hold 
those  meetings,  to  which  also  ministers  of  the 
Moravian  and  Reformed  Churches,  wdiether  Ger- 
man or  English,  be  welcomed;  at  each  of  these 
meetings  the  communion  is  to  be  administered." 
The  time  was  then  appointed  when  these  meetings 
were  to  be  held  in  each  pastoral  charge. 

Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  was  appointed  as  a  traveling 
missionary  for  the  Synod,  with  the  power  to  or- 
ganize new  congregations,  and  to  take  up  collec- 
tions for  this  object. 

It  was  also  resolved,  that  Revs.  Storch  and 
Schober  prepare  a  pastoral  letter  to  the  various 
churches  in  connection  with  this  Synod,  and  that 
it  be  appended  to  the  minutes. 

The  candidates.  Revs.  Jacob  Scherer  and  God- 
frey Dreher,  were  then  licensed  to  the  ministry, 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  377 

and  the  catechets,  J.  M.  Rueckert  and  Jacob 
Krieson,  had  their  limited  licenses  renewed. 

The  names  of  all  the  congregations  belonging 
to  the  Sj^nod,  with  their  pastors,  ]ay  readers,  elders 
and  deacons,  are  appended  to  the  minutes;  the 
names  of  these  churches  are  as  follows  : 

Hev.  Storch's  pastorate:  Zion's  or  Organ;  Buftalo 
Creek  or  St.  John's;  Irish  Settlement,  now  Luther 
Chapel;  Pine,  now  Union ;  Crooked  Creek;  and 
Bear  Creek,  now  Bethel. 

Rev.  31arkert's  pastorate:  Pilgrim's;  Beck's; 
Schweiszguth  (Swicegood),  now  Sandy  Creek; 
Lau's;  Frieden's;  Graves,  now  St.  Paul's,  Ala- 
mance County.  Richland  Church  was  supplied 
by  Jacob  Krieson  as  catechet  or  lay  reader. 

Hev.  Schober^s  pastorate:  Muddy  Creek;  and 
Dutchman's  Creek. 

Rev.  Rhilip  HenkeVs  pastorate :  St.  John's ;  Old 
Church;  Schopl-house  Church ;  Kasner's;  Leba- 
non; Emanuel's;  Hebron;  and  Zion's;  all  in  Lin- 
coln Count3\ 

*'  Various  congregations  in  South  Carolina^  which 
connected  themselves  with  our  Synod :"  Bethel 
Church,  on  High  Hill  Creek;  St.  Peter's;  Zion's; 
and  a  Reformed  Church,  of  which  Henry  Kuhn, 
Samuel  Bockman,  and  Henry  SchuU  were  the 
elders. 

A  synodial  seal  w^as  also  adopted  with  certain 
devices,  bearing  the  words  "  Pax  vobis "  and 
*'Sigil.  Minist.  Evang.  Luth.  in  Carolia  Sept.  et 
Stat,  vicin."     A  lengthy  explanation  of  the  de- 

32 


378  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

vices    and    a   translation   of  the  Latin  words  as 
quoted  above  are  given  in  the  niinates. 

Then  follows  the  admonitory  pastoral  letter  as 
adopted  by  the  Synod,  and  prepared  by  Revs. 
S  to  roll  and  Schober. 


Section  4-.  31issionary  tou7^s  of  Revs.  Uiller,  Frank- 
low  and  Scherer. 

In  order  that  a  correct  knowledge  might  be  ob- 
tained concerning  the  condition  of  the  scattered 
Lutheran  cono:reo:ations  and  settlements  in  South 
Carolina,  Virginia,  Tennessee  and  Ohio,  the 
Synod  of  IN'orth  Carolina  sent  several  exploring 
missionaries  into  these  States,  with  instructions  to 
preach  the  gospel,  administer  the  sacraments,  and 
otherwise  to  encourage  and  build  up  the  dispersed 
members  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  their  most 
holy  faith.  From  the  published  reports  of  these 
missionaries  most  valuable  information  is  obtained, 
affording  us  a  portraiture  of  the  condition  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  those  States  at  that  time. 

The  Rev.  Robert  Johnson  Miller  was  the  first 
one  of  these  missionaries  sent  by  Synod  to  explore 
the  field;  he  started  upon  his  first  tour  June  18th, 
1811,  passing  through  Wilkes,  Surry  and  Stokes 
Counties,  i^.  C,  into  Virginia.  And,  although 
the  State  of  Virginia  is  not  embraced  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas, 
nevertheless,  a  few  extracts  from  Rev.  Miller's 
journal  of  his  tour  into  Virginia  and  return  through 


IN  mum   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  379 

Tennessee  may  still  be  acceptable.  Rev.  Miller 
states:  ''I  departed  from  my  home  in  Burke 
County  on  the  18th  day  of  June,  1811,  in  conli- 
dence  of  the  protection  of  God,  preached  twice  in 
Wilkes  County,  as  often  in  Surry,  four  times  in 
Stokes,  and  mostly  to  large,  serious  and  attentive 
congregations,  particularly  in  Germantown.  In 
the  first  forty -two  miles  of  my  journey  in  Virginia, 
I  found  only  one  small  Methodist  meeting-house, 
and  heard  of  no  settled  minister  of  any  denomina- 
tion. From  the  27th  to  the  30th  I  traveled  through 
much  spiritual  wilderness,  where  all  denominations 
live  dispersed,  their  youth  being  without  any  re- 
ligious instruction,  and  found  three  families  whose 
parents  had  been  Lutherans. 

"  Sunday,  July  2d.  I  met  preacher  Meyer  with 
his  numerous  congregation,  and  preached  to  atten- 
tive and  serious  people ;  their  teacher  (pastor)  is 
not  appointed  or  ordained  by  the  Pennsylvania 
Lutheran  Ministerium,  yet  he  administers  all  the 
sacraments;  I  warned  him  and  his  flock  against 
such  conduct.  He  informed  me  that  he  attended 
six  cono^reo^ations,  each  of  v/hich  consisted  of  from 
25  to  30  families. 

"  In  'New  Market  I  preached  three  times  to 
large  and  serious  congregations,  and  at  my  de- 
parture Dr.  Solomon  Henkel,  in  whose  house  I 
baptized  two  children,  and  his  brother  Ambrose 
presented  me  with  200  small  English  catechisms 
to  be  given  to  the  poor  and  ignorant,  which  order 
I  afterw^ards  faithfully  executed.  After  having 
crossed  the  Shenandoah  Mountain,  I  met  with 


380  THE  LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Moses  Henkel,  who  is  a  Methodist  preacher,  and 
a  brother  of  our  Kev.  Paul  Henkel. 

"  On  the  2d  of  August,  after  having  passed  the 
rough  Alleghany  Mountain,  I  found  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Lewisburg  a  Lutheran  congregation, 
who  are  attended  b}^  the  Rev.  Mr.  Flohr,  from 
Wythe  County,  three  times  a  year.  Excepting  a 
small  congregation  on  Jackson's  Fork  of  James 
liiver,  there  are  but  few  Lutheran  families  in 
Monroe  County,  and  all  are  without  Christian  in- 
struction. In  this  wliole  territory,  including  the 
South  Branch  of  the  Potomac,  and  the  counties 
of  Pendleton,  Bath,  Greenbriar,  Monroe,  Mont- 
gomery and  Wythe,  there  is  but  one  Lutheran 
minister.  Aug.  11th.  I  arrived  at  Rev.  Mr.  Flohr's 
in  Wythe  County;  he  attends  six  congregations; 
further  up  'New  River  there  is  another  numerous 
but  divided  congregation,  where,  minister  and  jus- 
tice, Stanger  resides. 

"From  here  I  went  by  w^ay  of  Abingdon  into 
Sullivan  County,  Tennessee,  where  I  found  some 
German  congregations,  who  are  attended  by  Rev. 
Mr.  Smith ;  before  his  arrival  here  they  were  at- 
tended by  Rev.  Mr.  Sink,  now  gone  to  Kentucky ; 
I  preached  in  all  congregations  and  in  other  places, 
particularly  in  Blountsville.  Aug.  31st.  I  met  with 
Rev.  Smith,  who  has  been  now  ordained  by  our 
Synod,  and  found  him  an  honest,  upright  man ; 
both  he  and  his  congregations  were  glad  of  the 
opportunity  to  be  connected  with  our  Ministerium; 
I  visited  as  manj^'  of  Mr.  Smith's  congregations  as 
possible,  partly  accompanied  by  him,  and  on  the 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  381 

11th  of  October,  after  having  preached  at  Cove 
Creek  to  a  large  and  attentive  congregation,  I 
separated  from  Rev.  Mr.  Smith  and  the  good  peo- 
ple, wishing  them  spirit,  life,  fidelity  and  zeal,  es- 
pecially in  the  instruction  of  their  youth,  so  that 
the  future  race  might  not  be  more  bewildered,  and 
departed  on  my  homeward  journej^,  where  I  ar- 
rived in  safety,  after  an  absence  of  three  months." 

The  next  tour  the  Rev^  Mr.  Miller  made  into 
the  State  of  South  Carolina.  He  says  in  his 
journal:  "The  second  part  of  my  journey  I  began 
on  the  4tli  of  November,  1811,  and  spent  the  first 
evening  about  twenty-five  miles  from  home.  When 
I  came  to  Rutherfordton,  my  appointment  to 
preach  had  not  been  made.  From  thence  I  rode, 
crossing  Broad  and  Green  Rivers,  through  a  thinly 
settled  country  to  Spartanburg,  South  Carolina. 
Saturday,  9th,  I  arrived  at  Mr.  Robert  Smith's, 
on  Hard  Labor  Creek,  where  my  appointments 
were  to  commence,  and  preached  on  Sunday  in  a 
German  meeting-house."  (This  part  of  the  jour- 
nal is  omitted,  having  been  given  on  a  preceding 
page.) 

"  On  the  13th  I  preached  fourteen  miles  from 
Savannah  River  to  a  serious  congregation,  chiefly 
Presbyterians.  Farther  up  on  Little  Saluda  River, 
which  I  passed  the  next  day  at  a  dangerous  ford, 
there  is  a  considerable  number  of  our  people, 
whom  I  did  not  see.  Throughout  this  whole 
country  no  attention  is  paid  to  the  religious  in- 
struction of  youth,  except  among  the  Presby- 
terians.    In  such  a  condition  of  things  there  can, 


382  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  course,  be  but  very  little  vital  religion  among 
the  people. 

"On  the  19th,  after  sermon  in  Hallow  Creek 
Church,  called  Salem,  I  became  acquainted  with 
a  poor  man  calling  himself  a  preacher,  but  to  all 
appearance  destitute  of  the  spirit  and  temper  of 
a  Christian,  as  well  as  of  every  qualification  to 
preach.  I  gave  him  some  advice,  but  received 
very  little  thanks.  From  hence  I  preached  in  all 
the  German  congregations  throughout  the  neigh- 
borhood until  the  28th.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  labor 
here;  the  people  love  the  gospel  of  Jesus  and  his 
servants. 

"About  forty  miles  south  of  this  place,  I  ar- 
rived at  one  of  the  first  settled  congregations  in 
all  these  quarters  (St.  Matthew's,  Orangeburg  Dis- 
trict); visited  their  teacher,  Mr.  Franklow;  found 
the  congregation  much  decayed,  but  it  might  be 
revived  and  increased  if  it  could  be  supplied  with 
a  minister  of  talents  and  grace.  They  iiave  been 
attended  for  several  years  past  by  Mr.  Franklow, 
who,  as  he  says,  had  received  license  from  the 
Bishop  of  the  Church  of  England  to  baptize. 

"  On  my  return  to  the  Saluda  River  I  preached, 
December  1st,  in  the  oldest  German  church  in 
this  vicinity  to  a  large  and  very  serious  congrega- 
tion, and  found  the  people  very  desirous  to  place 
themselves  under  the  care  of  our  Synod. 

"On  the  4th,  after  having  preached,  I  arrived 
again  at  Brother  John  Dreher's.  This  man  has 
exerted  himself  for  some  years  past,  in  the  absence 
of  a  settled  minister,  to  keep  the  light  of  the 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  383 

gospel  buriiiiig.  He  had  divinely  pious  books 
printed  at  liis  own  expense,  spreads  them  for  a 
low  price  among  the  people,  and  an  evident  bless- 
ing rests  upon  his  exertions.  On  Friday,  the  6th, 
I  went  to  the  Lutheran  minister,  Wallern,  found 
him  about  his  farming  business,  conversed  tliat 
evening  and  the  following  day  much  with  him  on 
the  state  of  the  Church,  of  religion,  and  on  other 
subjects,  and  found  him  a  man  acquainted  w^ith 
the  world.  Sunday,  the  8th,  I  preached  in  his 
church.  He  accompanied  me  also  the  following 
day  to  a  funeral,  where  I  addressed  the  people  on 
the  subject  of  death  and  preparation;  he  preached 
from  Ps.  37  :  18.  On  the  following  day  I  preached 
to  a  small  but,  to  all  appearance,  serious  people, 
and  therewith  finished  my  missionary  tour  for 
this  year. 

"I  have  to  observe  that  in  the  counties  of  Bo- 
tetourt, Augusta  and  Rockingham,  in  Virginia, 
an  itinerant  minister,  qualified  to  preach  both  in 
the  German  and  English,  would  be  of  great  bene- 
fit, and  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  w^ould  have  great 
success  in  bringing  back  many  of  those,  who  have 
been  obliged  to  leave  the  Church  for  the  want  of 
a  minister  qualified  to  administer  her  ordinances 
to  them.  The  people  there  are  much  in  want  of 
such  a  minister,  and  a  circuit  could  be  formed  on 
that  plan,  that  would  work  beneficiall}^  Another 
itinerant  minister,  qualified  as  above,  to  travel 
from  Broad  River  westward  near  to  the  Savannah 
River,  and  southward  near  to  Charleston,  would  be 
employed  equally  as  useful,  and  there  is  no  doubt 


384  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

but  that  the  people  would  cheerfully  contribute 
what  would  be  sufficient  for  a  decent  support. 
Oh!  that  the  Lord  would  give  us  three  or  four 
young  ministers,  endowed  with  grace  and  talents, 
and  gifted  to  preach  in  both  languages,  much 
could  then  be  done  for  his  Church.  The  consfre- 
gations  there  now  are  sensibly  mouldering  away 
for  the  want  of  such  preachers.  Among  the  old 
Germans  there  is  a  standing  still;  their  youth 
learn  and  speak  English;  if  a  teacher  speaks 
German,  it  As  to  them  like  the  sound  of  the 
church-bell.     But  the  affair  is  the  Lord's. 

*'  On  my  whole  tour  I  have  baptized  this  year 
two  adults  and  sixty  children,  preached  sixty-seven 
times,  traveled  three  thousand  miles,  and  received 
$70.44  for  my  support,  without  asking  for  a  cent 
in  any  way,  and  arrived  home  in  health  and  safety. 
Honor,  thanks  and  praise  be  to  the  Lord." 

On  page  11  of  the  minutes  of  the  IN'orth  Caro- 
lina Synod  for  1812,  the  following  record  may  be 
found:  "The  Rev.  Mr.  Franklow  was  hereupon 
requested  to  make  one  or  more  visits  in  a  part  of 
South  Carolina  called  Saltketcher,  there  to  in- 
quire into  the  situation  of  the  residue  of  our  mem- 
bers, who  formerly  had  a  well-regulated  congre- 
gation, and  report  the  result  of  his  inquiries  to 
the  next  Synod." 

This  duty  Eev.  Franklow  performed  faithfully, 
and  reported  at  length,  which  report  was  greatly 
abbreviated  and  inserted  in  the  minutes;  but  the 
original  document  having  been  found  some  twelve 
years  ago  among  Rev.  G.  Shober's  papers,  in  a 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  385 

garret  of  one  of  his  grandchildren  in  Salem,  !N'orth 
Carolina,  it  is  now  presented,  and  reads  as  follows: 

"Sunday,  March  28th,  1813.  I  set  out  on  my 
journe}'  from  my  church  after  Divine  service,  and 
arrived  in  the  evening  at  Mr.  Moss',  on  Edisto 
River.  Here  I  made  an  appointment  to  preach 
in  a  new  Methodist  meeting-house  on  my  return 
on  Thursday,  April  8th.  The  next  day  I  crossed 
the  Little  Saltketcher  through  a  long  swamp  and 
deep  water,  and  came  in  the  evening  to  Air. 
Shobert,  a  church-warden  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Church.  I  made  my  appointment  to  preach  in 
this  church  on  Friday,  April  2d,  and  on  Sunday 
and  Monday  following  at  St.  Nicholas  Church, 
and.  again  at  St.  Bartholomew's  on  mj^  return  on 
Tuesday,  April  6th. 

"March  31st.  To-day  I  w^as  introduced  to  sev- 
eral members  of  the  church,  when  I  was  informed 
that  they  had  a  minister,  who  had  lived  and 
preached  nine  years  among  them,  named  John 
Henry  Graff,  a  native  of  Saxony,  in  Germany, 
and  who  labored  there  ever  since  the  death  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Bamberg.  Graff  was  ordained  by  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Wallern  to  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel. 
For  two  years  the  members  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Church  had  not  employed  Graff  any  longer  as 
their  pastor,  and  in  St.  Nicholas  Church  his  time 
expires  in  three  weeks.  I  found  that  the  minister 
and  people  were  opposed  to  each  other,  and  upon 
inquiry  as  to  the  cause  of  this  division,  I  was  in- 
formed that  Mr.  Graft*  could  not  speak  the  English 
language   so  as  to  be   understood,  and  that  his 

33 


386  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

sermons  were  three  and  four  hours  long;  that  he 
had  no  energy  and  life  in  his  discourse;  that  he 
spoke  too  low  to  he  heard  distinctly;  in  short, 
that  they  would  engage  him  no  longer  as  their 
pastor.  Mr.  Shohert  desired  me  to  go  and  see 
him,  which  I  had  intended  to  do. 

"April  1st.  I  visited  Mr.  Graff,  and  stayed  sev- 
eral hours  with  him.  I  found  him  at  home,  ex- 
pecting to  see  me,  from  the  report  of  some  of  his 
neighbors  that  a  strange  minister  was  come  to 
visit  him  and  the  congregations.  He  received 
me  in  a  friendly  manner,  and  I  found  him  well 
informed  in  religion  and  the  Scriptures.  He  told 
me  of  the  dislike  which  his  congregations  had 
against  him,  which  he  said  proceeded  from  the 
familj^  in  which  his  daughter  had  married,  who 
was  then  a  widow,  and  now  they  were  maliciously 
affected  towards  him.  He  showed  me  his  letter 
of  ordination,  signed  by  Eev.  Mr.  Wallern  and 
church-wardens,  dated  September,  1800.  He 
works  at  his  trade,  being  a  shoemaker,  to  support 
his  family. 

"  April  2d.  I  went  to  St.  Bartholomew's  Church, 
which  is  in  sight  of  their  minister's  house,  and 
preached  in  the  German  and  English  languages  to 
a  small  but  attentive  congregation,  one  of  whom, 
Mr.  Copel,  asked  me  to  baptize  a  child  for  him  on 
my  return  next  Tuesday.  I  was  surprised,  and 
told  him  I  did  not  wish  to  do  it,  as  they  had  a 
mimster;  to  which  he  replied,  that  Graft'  was  no 
longer  their  minister,  as  he  had  not  been  engaged 
in  tliat  church  these  two  years,  and  that  if  I  would 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  387 

not  baptize  his  cliikl,  Mr.  GraiF  should  not  do  it. 
The  next  day  I  crossed  the  Big  Saltketcher  at 
Rivers'  Ford,  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  mile  wide, 
and  very  deep,  and  arrived  at  Mr.  Jacob  Hardee's, 
one  of  the  wardens  of  St.  IsTicholas  Church.  He 
has  a  mill,  and  by  that  means  most  of  the  people 
were  informed  that  divine  service  would  be  per- 
formed the  next  day. 

"  Sunday,  April  4th.  I  went  to  St.  Nicholas  and 
preached  to  a  serious  congregation;  the  people 
were  very  attentive,  both  to  the  German  and  Eng- 
lish discourses.  After  service  I  published,  as  I 
had  promised,  that  the  Lord's  Supper  would  be 
administered  on  Easter  Sunday  by  their  minister, 
but  not  one  offered  to  give  in  their  names,  and 
wished  that  I  should  administer  it  to  them  on  that 
day;  to  which  I  replied  that  it  was  impossible,  as 
I  had  two  appointments  to  fill,  one  at  Sandy  Run 
next  Sunday,  and  at  my  own  church  on  Easter 
Day.  They  then  begged  me  to  visit  them  again, 
and  administer  the  sacraments,  as  Mr.  Graff  was 
not  worthy  to  administer  au}^  sacrament.  I  told 
them  that,  if  possible,  I  would  pay  them  another 
visit  in  the  fall,  and  would  make  my  appointments 
by  letter  before  I  came.  On  Monday  I  preached 
again  at  St.  ISTicholas,  to  a  tolerably  full  congrega- 
tion, part  of  the  members  having  been  prevented 
from  attending  on  account  of  tlie  session  of  Barn- 
well court,  which  commenced  this  da3^  The 
people  complained  that  whilst  Mr.  Graff  lived 
among  them,  no  other  minister  would  come  to  be 
their  pastor. 


388  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

"•  Tuesday,  April  6th.  After  having  crossed 
Broxton's  Ford  in  a  canoe,  and  swimming  my 
horse,  I  arrived  yesterday  at  my  old  lodging-place, 
Mr.  Shobert's.  I  went  to-day  to  St.  Bartholomew's 
Church,  where  I  met  Mr.  Graff,  wlio  promised  to 
preach  in  English  after  my  discourse.  He  in- 
formed me  that  a  neighbor  of  his  baptized  children 
without  license  or  authority,  and  that  the  people 
employed  him  in  preference  to  Mr.  Graff's  attend- 
ing upon  this  duty.  After  my  discourse  Mr.  Graff 
preached  in  the  German  instead  of  the  English 
language,  although  it  was  contrary  to  his  promise 
and  the  people's  expressed  desire.  After  service 
I  baptized  Mr.  Copel's  child,  rather  than  suffer  it 
to  be  baptized  by  an  improper  person.  Here  I 
took  my  leave  of  this  people,  exhorting  them  to 
reconciliation  and  unity  with  their  minister.  They 
answered  that  this  could  uot  be,  but  that  they 
were  now  as  lost  sheep  without  a  shepherd;  that 
they  went  to  hear  the  word  of  God  among  the 
Methodists  and  Baptists,  but  would  not  join  them, 
as  thej^  wished  to  keep  to  the  religion  of  their 
fathers.  They  hoped  that  some  good  minister 
would  soon  be  their  pastor,  and  begged  me  to 
state  their  condition  before  the  Lutheran  Synod, 
and  that  they  would  appoint  me  or  some  other 
minister  to  visit  them  again. 

"  April  7th.  I  went  to  Mr.  Moss  with  the  hope 
of  filling  my  appointment  at  the  Edisto  Methodist 
Meeting-house,  when  I  w^as  informed  that  they 
objected  to  me,  on  account  of  my  being  a  Lutheran 
minister.     The  next  day  I  went  to  Sandy  Kun,  in 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  389 

accordance  Avitli  my  promise,  where  I  met  Revs. 
Drelier  and  Henkel.  We  preached  to  a  numerous 
assemhly ;  and  on  Sunday  friend  Dreher  and  I 
administered  the  Lord's  Supper  to  many  commu- 
nicants in  the  presence  of  a  large  assembly.  I 
arrived  at  home,  thanks  to  God,  safe  and  well, 
and  found  my  family  in  good  health,  although  my 
horse  could  scarcely  carry  me  home." 

Eev.  Jacob  Scherer's  missionary  tour  was  made 
within  the  State  of  Ohio,  where  a  great  number 
of  families,  who  had  emigrated  from  North  Caro- 
lina, were  then  residing,  and  for  whose  spiritual 
welfare  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was  much 
concerned. 

Eev.  Scherer  accompanied  Eev.  Miller  into 
Virginia,  who  then  made  a  second  tour  through 
that  State,  in  1813,  as  far  down  the  Shenandoah 
Valley  as  Winchester,  and  whose  lengthy  report 
is  published  in  the  minutes  of  that  year.  In  Pen- 
dleton County,  Eevs.  Scherer  and  Miller  separated 
from  each  other,  each  one  taking  his  journey  as 
prescribed  by  Synod. 

Eev.  Scherer  writes :  "  On  the  4th  of  June  I 
parted  from  Eev.  Miller,  and  taking  Mr.  Gobel 
with  me,  we  journeyed  westwardly  towards  the 
State  of  Ohio,  passing  through  Tiger's  Valley,  a 
region  of  great  spiritual  darkness.  Proselyting  is 
carried  on  extensively  here,  and  some  of  the  Ger- 
mans have  united  themselves  with  the  Baptists  and 
Methodists,  but  very  few  heathens  have  become 
Christians. 

*'  From  Clarksburg  we  went  to  Marietta,  where 


390  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

we  crossed  the  Ohio  River,  and  passing  ITew  Lan 
caster  we  came  to  Dayton  on  the  17th  of  Jnne. 
On  this  route  I  baptized  seven  children  and  one 
adult. 

"  On  the  following  Sunday  I  preached  twice 
among  the  Germans,  who  are  mostly  from  I^orth 
Carolina^  and  intend  building  a  church,  desiring 
to  have  a  preacher  from  that  State."  (The  first 
English  Lutheran  Church  of  Dayton,  Ohio,  was 
organized  and  established  at  a  subsequent  period 
by  a  minister  from  I^Torth  Carolina,  the  Rev.  D. 
P.  Rosen  miller,  so  the  writer  was  informed  on  his 
visit  to  that  city  in  1868.)  ''  From  here  I  visited 
my  uncle.  Christian  Scherer,  in  which  neighbor- 
hood I  preached  four  days,  from  the  24th  to  the 
27th,  to  large  congregations;  baptized  five  chil- 
dren. The  spiritual  condition  of  Ohio  is  dark; 
people  of  all  denominations  are  intermixed,  and 
although  they  have  many  preachers  among  them, 
there  appears  to  be  a  want  of  such,  who  have  sound 
doctrine  and  are  of  good  repute. 

"On  the  29th  of  June  we  left  the  State  of  Ohio, 
and  proceeded  on  our  homeward  journey,  and  ar- 
rived on  the  7th  of  July  in  Powell's  Valley,  where 
I  preached  and  baptized  seventeen  children.  The 
people  complained  with  tears  of  their  desolate 
situation,  urgently  beseeching  us  to  send  them  a 
minister.  There  are  many  families  here  from 
]N"orth  Carolina,  and  several  congregations  could 
be  formed;  the  people  are  willing  to  build  houses 
of  worship.  We  promised  them  that  they  should 
be  visited,  and  their  children  instructed  and  con- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  891 

firmed.  On  the  9th  I  preached  in  Grassy  Valley, 
and  the  next  day  arrived  at  Rev.  Smith's,  who  ac- 
companied me  from  the  13th  to  the  19th,  for  here 
Mr.  Gobel  left  me.  In  one  place  twenty-five  chil- 
dren requested  to  be  instructed  and  confirmed, 
and  other  persons  subscribed  their  names  to  form 
a  congregation. 

^'On  the  20th  I  formed  another  congregation 
in  the  Fork  of  the  Holstein,  and  eleven  young 
people  desired  to  be  instructed.  On  the  21st  I 
preached  in  Rosslcr's  Church;  the  congregation 
with  joy  placed  itself  under  our  Synod,  and  nine 
persons  requested  to  be  confirmed.  The  next  day 
I  preached  in  Buler's  Church,  where  a  Mr.  Zink 
officiates,  who  said  that  he  had  been  once  in  Penn- 
sylvania, when  Rev.  Mr.  Helmuth  and  Smith  had 
given  him  license,  but  that  it  had  long  since  ex- 
pired, and  still  he  persuaded  the  people  that  he 
had  a  right  to  act  as  a  minister. 

''Sunday,  the  25th,  I  preached  in  a  new  church 
on  the  Middle  Fork  of  the  Holstein,  in  Washing- 
ton County,  Virginia,  where  a  small  congregation 
was  formed;  thirteen  persons  gave  in  their  names 
for  instruction;  the  Rev.  Mr.  Flohr  promised  to 
instruct  them.  On  the  North  Fork  of  the  Hol- 
stein there  is  another  desolate  congregation,  which 
had  never  yet  been  visited.  Here  I  found  an  ig- 
norant man  preaching  and  baptizing  without  the 
least  ceremony;  he  takes  up  the  children,  pours 
water  on  them,  and  says  nothing,  and  yet  the  poor 
ignorant  people  know  no  better,  but  acknowledge 
him  as  a  minister. 


892  •       TnE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

*'0n  the  28tli  I  arrived  at  Rev.  Mr.  Flolir's,  by 
whose  loving  and  brotherly  treatment,  condescend- 
ing and  spiritual  conversation,  I  was  exceedingly 
comforted — I  was  delighted.  From  here  I  jour- 
neyed homewards,  having  traveled  in  all  1617 
miles,  preached  50  times,  baptized  72  children  and 
one  adult,  and  in  connection  with  Brother  Miller, 
and  partly  alone,  13  congregations  were  formed, 
consisting  of  1175  members,  and  215  persons  re- 
quested to  be  instructed  in  the  doctrines  of  Christ." 


Section  5.  Emigration  from  North  Carolina  to 
several  new  States  and  Territories. 

At  w^hat  time  the  exodus  from  Xorth  Carolina 
to  other  States  and  Territories  commenced  can- 
not now  be  precisely  stated.  Before  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  very  few  English  and  German  settlers 
had  crossed  the  Alleghany  Mountains  from  any 
portion  of  the  Atlantic  slope,  and  during  the  prog- 
ress of  the  war,  as  a  matter  of  course,  emigration 
to  the  West  was  impossible.  JSTow  allowing  the 
inhabitants  of  the  United  States  several  years'  time 
to  recover  from  the  efiects  of  the  war,  and  the 
dangers  of  travel  through  sparsely  settled  coun- 
tries and  among  hostile  Indian  tribes  gradually 
subsiding,  this  westward  emigration  scarcely  com- 
menced until  the  beginning  of  the  present  cen- 
tury, and  most  probably  not  until  after  the  pur- 
chase of  the  Western  territory  by  the  United 
States  from  the  government  of  France,  under  ivTa- 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  393 

poleon  I,  in  1803,  usually  called  "The  Louisiana 
Purchase." 

Thousands  of  German  families,  as  well  as  Ameri- 
can citizens,  induced  by  the  flattering  reports  of 
the  fertility  of  the  lands  in  the  West,  and  the  ad- 
vantageous offers  made  to  settlers  to  secure  for 
themselves  a  home  almost  "without  money  and 
without  price,"  sold  their  paternal  possessions  in 
!N'orth  Carolina,  and  migrated  to  Tennessee,  Ken- 
tucky, Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois  and  other  States 
and  Territories.  The  Synod  of  IsTorth  Carolina, 
feeliiig  concerned  for  the  spiritual  w^elfare  of  its 
former  children,  and  hearing  their  continued  call 
for  the  bread  of  life,  sent  missionaries  to  these 
settlers  to  visit  them,  who,  themselves  becoming 
enamored  w^ith  the  flattering  advantages  and  pros- 
pects of  these  "new  countries,"  likewise  soon  be- 
came classed  amons;  the  new  settlers.  In  this  man- 
ner  were  Lutheran  congregations  formed  in  Ohio, 
Indiana  and  Illinois,  composed  almost  entirely  of 
North  Carolinians;  and  whilst  this  was  a  decided 
advantage  to  the  West,  it  was,  on  the  other  hand, 
a  fearful  drain  upon  the  strength  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  "the  old  :N'orth  State." 

In  many  instances  the  German  Lutheran  settlers 
in  the  West  became  so  scattered,  that  it  was  found 
impracticable  to  continue  their  connection  with 
the  Church  of  their  fathers,  and  thus  were  they  ab- 
sorbed by  otlier  denominations,  and  lost  to  the 
Lutheran  Church.  Concerning  all  this,  a  recent 
correspondent  to  "  The  Lutheran  and  Missionary  " 
expresses  himself  as  follows:  "Instead  of  (the  Lu- 


304  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

theran  Church  in  North  Carolina)  being  strength- 
ened by  immigration  into  it,  it  has  suffered  greatly 
by  emigration  from  it.  For  forty  (and  more)  years 
large  numbers  of  Lutherans  have  each  year  gone 
westward.  They  and  their  descendants  are  found 
in  nearly  all  the  Western  States.  Some  of  these 
have  been  gathered  into  congregations  in  their 
new  homes;  but  the  great  majority  have  been  lost, 
not  only  to  the  Church  in  North  Carolina,  but  to 
the  Lutheran  Church.  Some  congregations,  once 
large  and  flourishing,  have  been  almost  destroyed 
by  it.  A  very  large  proportion  of  the  young  men 
of  the  Church  of  the  State  have  gone  entirely  be- 
yond her  reach.  She  has  not  only  been  weakened 
by  these  losses,  but  discouraged." 

In  South  Carolina  the  Lutheran  Church  also 
lost  heavily  in  the  number  of  her  membership  by 
emigration  to  other  States,  but  not  at  this  early 
period  of  her  history.  Numbers  moved  away  at 
a  later  date,  and  formed  colonies  in  Georgia, 
Florida,  Alabama,  Mississippi  and  Texas,  many 
of  whom  are  still  true  to  the  Church  of  their 
fathers,  whilst  others  again  have  connected  them- 
selves with  other  denominations. 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  395 


Section  6.  Additional  Extracts  from  the  Minutes  of 
the  North  Carolina  Synod  from  1811  to  1815^ 
exhibiting  the  Bapid  Increase  of  its  Influence, 
the  Extension  of  its  Borders,  and  its  Great  Want 

of  Ministers. 

The  meeting  of  Synod  of  1811  was  not  well  at- 
tended, hence  very  little  bnsiness  was  transacted. 
A  special  meeting  of  Synod  was  therefore  held  in 
April,  1812,  at  which  time  the  Synod  numbered 
twelve  ministers,  including  the  licentiates;  nine 
congregations  in  Tennessee,  under  the  pastoral 
care  of  Rev.  C.  Z.  H.  Smith,  connected  themselves 
with  the  Synod  at  this  meeting;  the  names  of 
these  churches  were,  Zion's  and  Roller's,  in  Sullivan 
County;  Brownsboro  and  (name  not  mentioned), 
in  Washington  County;  Patterson,  Sinking  Spring 
and  Cove  Creek,  in  Green  County;  Lonax  and 
Thomas,  in  Knox  and  Blount  Counties.  ''A  pe- 
tition from  South  Carolina,  signed  by  18  Reformed 
and  13  Lutherans,  was  read,  praying  that  Synod 
should  ordain  William  Hauk  as  a  German  Re- 
formed minister,  but  this  Synod,  after  due  con- 
sideration, concluded  that  they  could  not  consist- 
ently do  anything  in  the  matter." 

The  parochial  reports,  ranging  from  two  to 
twenty-four  years,  and  which  had  never  been 
handed  in  before,  sum  up  as  follows:  26  congre- 
gations, 2071  confirmations,  100  adult  baptisms; 
infant  baptisms  and  communicants  were  not  re- 
ported ;  besides  these  are  the  reports  of  only  five 


396  THE    LUTHERAX    CHURCH 

of  the  ministers  whose  congregations  were  all  lo- 
cated in  J!!^orth  Carolina. 

"It  was  resolved  that  Sundaj'-schools  should  be 
publicly  recommended  from  the  pulpit  in  all  our 
congregations." 

A  written  plan,  embracing  ten  articles,  was 
presented  to  Synod  for  the  purpose  "  of  establish- 
ing schools  for  our  poor  children,"  to  be  supported 
by  voluntary  donations  from  the  members  of  the 
Church;  in  which  schools  the  German  and  English 
languages  were  to  be  taught.  It  was  also  unani- 
mously declared,  that  Luther's  Smaller  Catechism 
"  must  remain  the  foundation  of  instruction ;"  also 
the  catechisms  printed  by  Ambrose  Henkel  &  Co., 
were  recommended  for  general  adoption. 

"A  fervent  wish  being  expressed  to  enter  into 
a  nearer  and  more  cordial  connection  with  the 
brethren  professing  our  faith  in  Pennsylvania,  a 
letter  of  the  year  1807,  addressed  to  our  Minis- 
terium  from  the  Ministerium  of  Pennsylvania,  was 
read.  We  felt  sorry  that,  because  in  said  and  the 
succeeding  year  no  full  Synod  had  been  assem- 
bled, the  same  was  mislaid,  and  the  receipt  thereof 
never  acknowledged,  nor  has  the  letter  been  an- 
swered. Revs.  Storch  and  Shober  were  hereupon 
appointed  in  the  name  of  this  Synod  to  answer 
the  said  letter,  and  to  send  them,  at  the  same  time, 
a  cop3^  of  the  principal  transactions  of  this  a^^d  ihe 
last  Synod,  together  with  the  most  memorable 
matter  of  Rev.  Miller's  missionary  tour." 

Rev.  Mr.  Storch  was  commissioned  to  prepare 
a  liturgy,  and  lay  the  same  before  the  next  Synod. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  397 

On  the  18th  Octoher,  1812,  the  regular  session 
of  Synod  was  held.  President,  Rev.  E.  J.  Miller, 
and  Rev.  G.  Shober,  Secretary.  Rev.  Jacob  Sherer 
was  ordained  at  this  meeting.  A  letter  from  Rev. 
J.  G.  Schm acker,  of  York,  Pa.,  was  read,  aci^nowl- 
edging  the  receipt  of  the  friendly  letter  from  the 
North  Carolina  Synod,  by  the  Ministerium  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  informing  the  Synod  that  their 
President,  Rev.  Mr.  Helmuth,  was  requested  to 
reply  to  the  same. 

The  following  condensed  missionary  report  of 
Rev.  Philip  Henkel  is  inserted  in  the  minutes: 
^'I  served  as  missionary  preacher  from  the  lltii 
of  May  to  the  7th  of  August ;  traveled  1534  miles, 
preached  50  times,  baptized  115  children  and  4 
adults,  and  administered  the  Lord's  Supper  4  times, 
in  all  to  45  communicants.  I  found  in  the  States 
of  North  Carolina,  Tennessee,  and  Virginia,  many 
deserted  congregations,  and  they  everywhere  pray 
that  preachers  be  sent  them." 

Two  new  congregations,  organized  by  Rev. 
Shober,  named  Hopewell  and  Bethlehem,  were 
received  in  connection  with  the  Synod;  so  also 
was  the  Sandy  Run  congregation  in  South  Caro- 
lina, under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  Godfrey 
Dreher. 

The  Synod  of  1813  convened  in  Pilgrim's 
Church,  Davidson  Count}^  N.  C,  in  October;  it 
was  well  attended  by  ministers  and  lay  delegates, 
and  the  minutes  contain  fifty-two  pages  of  closely 
printed  matter,  made  up  principally  of  sermons 
and  the  missionary  journals  of  Revs.  Miller  and 


898  THE   LUTHERAN   CHUECH 

Scherer.  Eev.  Storch  was  elected  President,  and 
Rev.  Shober,  Secretary.  Eevs.  David  Henkel,  J. 
P.  Schmucker,  and  Daniel  Moser,  were  licensed 
to  the  ministry.  Four  congregations  in  Shenan- 
doah and  Rockingham  Counties,  Virginia,  named 
Hoxbiehl,  Solomon's,  Rider's  and  Paul's  Churches, 
were  received  in  connection  with  the  Synod. 

^'Rev.  Scherer  also  gave  information  that  fifteen 
congregations,  which  he  had  visited  last  summer, 
and  of  which  some  were  newly  formed  by  Rev. 
Miller  and  himself,  desired  to  be  admitted  to  our 
association,  and  to  be  placed  under  the  care  of  our 
ministry;  and  they  were,  with  thanks  to  our  gra- 
cious Lord,  accepted,  which  resolution  was,  how- 
ever, accompanied  with  this  deep  sigh :  0 !  had 
we  more  faithful  servants  of  the  Lord  !  In  these 
fifteen  congregations  there  are  1323  souls  desirous 
to  be  waited  on  with  the  word,  and  out  of  that 
number  241  have  given  in  their  names,  requesting 
to  be  cateehized  and  confirmed."  Whereupon  it 
was  resolved  to  petition  the  Moravian  Church  for 
one  or  more  ministers  to  labor  in  connection  with 
the  Synod,  to  supply  the  "  want  of  able  laborers  in 
the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  entrusted  to  the  Synod." 

On  the  16th  of  October,  1814,  the  Synod  con- 
vened at  Organ  Church,  Rowan  County,  N".  C. 
At  this  meeting  there  were  eighteen  ministers 
present,  twelve  of  whom  were  licentiates.  The 
oflacers  of  the  preceding  year  were  re-elected.  It 
was  resolved  that,  inasmuch  as  the  Pennsylvania 
Synod  had  concluded  to  publish  a  liturgy,  no  fur- 
ther steps  be  taken  to  prepare  one  by  this  Synod, 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  399 

hoping  to  be  nnitecl  with  that  Synod  in  the  intro- 
duction of  its  liturgy  in  our  congregations. 

The  congregations  in  Tennessee  having  lost 
their  minister,  Rev.  Mr.  Smith,  by  death,  during 
the  past  year,  Rev.  Philip  Henkel  consented  to 
become  their  pastor. 

A  difficulty  arose  with  catechet  Michael  Mackin, 
who  insisted  that  prayer  would  not  be  answered 
unless  performed  in  a  kneeling  posture,  and  who 
introduced  that  position  in  prayer  in  the  congre- 
gations where  he  exhorted  ;  he  being  absent  from 
Synod,  Rev.  Storch  was  appointed  to  examine  him, 
and  if  still  unwilling  to  conform  to  the  established 
rules  of  the  Church,  to  withhold  his  license  from 
him. 

A  circular  from  the  Lutheran  congregation  in 
Charleston,  S.  C,  was  presented,  earnestl}^  be- 
seeching the  Synod  to  send  them  a  minister  capa- 
ble of  preaching  in  the  German  and  English  lan- 
guages. The  Synod  regretted  that  none  could  be 
found  among  them  to  labor  in  this  hopeful  field, 
and  resolved  to  send  that  congregation  a  friendl}^ 
letter,  with  the  promise  that  if  deemed  necessary, 
it  should  be  visited  the  following  spring. 

The  following  congregations  were  received  in 
connection  with  the  Synod :  St.  Michael's  and 
Paul's  (Rail's),  Lexington  District,  S.  C.  One 
congregation  in  Newberry  District,  S.  C,  of  which 
Michael  and  Peter  Rickard,  Andrew  Wecker,  and 
Martin  Kinard,  were  elders;  and  Coldwater 
Church,  in  Cabarrus  County,  ^N".  C. 

Li  accordance  with  a  written  communication 


400  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

from  brother  John  Dreher,  of  South  Carolina, 
and  upon  his  desire,  it  was — 

'"' ResolvecL  That  neo;ro  slaves  be  instructed  in 
our  holj^  religion,  and  be  received  into  our  Church 
as  members;  and  that  congregations  should  make 
proper  arrangements  in  their  houses  of  worship  to 
give  the  slaves  also  the  opportunity  to  hear  the 
Gospel.     It  was  also — 

^' Besolved,  That  all  our  n:iinisters  unite  them- 
selves to  labor  against  the  pernicious  influence  and 
consequences  of  dancing,  and  seek  to  prevent  it  in 
every  possible  way. 

'•''Resolved,  That  a  special  conference  be  held  on 
the  third  Sunday  after  Easter,  in  St.  Michael's 
Church,  Lexington  District,  S.  C." 

An  appendix  to  the  minutes  contains  the  cor- 
respondence as  ordered  by  Synod  at  its  last  meet- 
ing, between  the  Synod's  committee.  Revs.  Storch 
and  Shober,  and  Bishop  Van  Vleck,  of  the  Mora- 
vian Cliurch,  on  the  subject  of  obtaining  a  supply 
of  ministers  from  that  Church.  And  althou2:h  the 
Bishop's  letter  was  a  very  friendly  one,  yet  he  re- 
gretted exceedingly,  that  at  that  time,  no  minister 
of  their  Church  could  be  spared. 

October  15th,  1815,  the  Synod  convened  in  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  Lincolnton,  N.  C,  but  on  ac- 
count of  sickness,  few  ministers  were  present. 

Resolved,  That  no  minister  has  a  right  to  leave 
his  congregations  and  labor  in  another  field  when- 
ever he  deems  it  advisable,  without  informing  the 
elders  and  deacons  of  his  intention  some  time  be- 


m   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  4:01 

forehand,  and  the  matter  be  brought  before  Synod 
for  final  decision. 

A  congregation  at  McCobbin's  Creek,  Mecklen- 
burg County,  E".  C,  was  received  in  connection 
with  Synod.  Quite  a  number  of  petitions  from 
three  congregations  in  Fairfieh.l  County,  Ohio, 
from  Washington  County,  Indiana,  then  still  a 
territory,  from  Sevier  County,  Tennessee,  were 
presented,  petitioning  Synod  for  ministers  of  the 
gospel,  but  ^vhich  could  only  be  partially  or  occa- 
sionally supplied  with  the  means  of  grace  by  a 
visiting  minister. 

Two  congregations  in  Iredell  County,  IlT.  C, 
named  ^N'ew  Pearth  (now  St.  Michael's)  and  Christ 
Churches,  were  taken  into  connection  with  the 
Synod.  The  other  transactions  of  this  meeting  of 
Synod  are  of  no  special  interest. 

Section  7.   Oingin  and  History  of  several  new  Congre- 
gations established  in  North  and  South  Carolina. 

From  the  extracts  of  the  minutes  of  the  IN'orth 
Carolina  Synod,  as  given  in  the  preceding  section, 
it  may  be  readily  perceived  that  the  Synod  was 
not  only  a  necessity  to  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
the  two  Carolinas,  but  also  to  the  same  Church  in 
other  States;  its  influence  extended  itself  into 
Virginia  and  Tennessee,  and  even  into  other  and 
more  distant  States.  Congregations  placed  them- 
selves under  its  care  in  such  numbers  as  to  distress 
the  members  of  Synod  to  know  how  to  make  pro- 
vision for  the  spiritual  wants  of  all  these  churches. 

34 


402  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

'Not  only  hundreds,  but  thousands  were  added  to 
the  number  of  its  communing  membership  in  an 
almost  incredibl}'  short  period  of  time.  In  addi- 
tion to  that,  a  number  of  new  congregations  were 
organized  in  its  immediate  territory,  likewise 
claiming  the  attention  and  care  of  Synod. 

God  certainly  gave  the  Synod  a  large  field  to 
occupy,  and  that  was  the  time  when  it  should  have 
taken  immediate  steps  to  establish  a  classical  and 
theological  school  for  the  education  of  young  men 
to  the  ministry;  and  it  would  have  been  well,  if 
some  of  the  older  and  more  educated  ministers 
had  abandoned  their  congregations,  if  necessary, 
but  particularly  their  private  interests,  such  as 
farming,  &c.,  had  conscientiously  taken  this  matter 
in  hand  themselves,  and  would  have  gone  at  once 
as  professors  into  the  lecture-room.  At  first  a  log 
hut  might  have  been  built  for  this  purpose  in  al- 
most any  locality;  this  would  have  sufiiced  for  a 
beginning,  until  a  more  convenient  and  stately 
edifice  could  have  been  erected,  and  at  a  place 
where  it  might  have  been  made  more  successful. 
True,  a  few  j-ears  later,  an  efiTort  was  made  in 
Tennessee  to  establish  such  an  institution,  but  it, 
of  necessity,  became  a  failure,  as  shall  be  shown 
hereafter,  for  want  of  proper  encouragement  and 
good  management. 

The  new  congregations  that  were  formed  in 
ISTorth  and  South  Carolina  are  the  following: 

1.  Bethel  Church,  Stanly  County,  N.  C,  which  is 
more  conmionly  known  as  "Bear  Creek  Church," 
on  account  of  its  contiguity  to  that  stream.    It  was 


IN  KOETH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  403 

at  this  time  a  unitedly  Lutheran  and  Reformed 
congregation,  and  its  Lutheran  members  mostly 
belonged  previously  to  St.  John^s  Church,  Cabarrus 
County.  About  the  year  1804  divine  worship  was 
held  in  Christopher  Layerle's  barn  for  two  or  three 
years,  who  donated  one  hundred  acres  of  well-tim- 
bered land  to  the  newly  organized  congregation; 
tlie  male  members  then  went  to  work  in  felling  the 
trees,  squaring  the  logs,  and  piling  them  up  in 
true  colonial  style,  until  the  new  church  edifice 
was  sufficiently  elevated  for  having  the  roof  placed 
upon  it,  and  other  necessary  work  done  to  it.  The 
following  extract  is  a  translation  from  its  church- 
book :"  VYe  erected  this  church  on  the  19th  and 
20th  of  March,  1806,  in  the  western  part  of  Mont- 
gomery (Stanly)  County,  which  was  quickly  brought 
under  roof,  and  was  made  so  far  comfortable  that 
on  the  following  25th  of  May,  Whitsunday,  service 
was  held  in  it  for  the  first  time  by  Rev.  George 
Boger  (a  German  Reformed  minister),  who  was 
our  pastor  at  that  time." 

The  church  was  afterwards  completed  at  a  cost 
of  about  |300,  and  presented  a  very  respectable 
and  comfortabe  appearance.  A  petition  for  aid 
was  then  drawn  up  by  Theophilus  Lotter,  their 
school-teacher,  and  was  sent  to  the  Lutheran  con- 
gregation in  Charleston,  S.  C,  who  were  moved 
to  present  this  infant  enterprise  with  three  boxes 
of  window  glass,  which  was  received  with  thank- 
fulness, duly  recorded  with  their  church-book,  and 
accordingly  appropriated  for  the  purpose  intended. 

This  same  church  building  is  still  standing  in 


404  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

all  its  early  strength  of  architecture,  and  may  re- 
sist the  encroachments  of  time  for  many  years  to 
come. 

The  congregation  was  for  a  long  time  deprived 
of  the  services  of  a  regular  Lutheran  pastor,  but 
was  frequently  visited  by  Revs.  Storch  and  J.  W. 
Meyer;  and  was  received  into  connection  with  the 
Synod  in  the  year  1810. 

2.  Coldwater  Creek  Church,  Cabarrus  County,  N, 
C,  now  St.  James'  Church,  Concord,  ^N".  C.  The 
early  records  of  this  congregation  have  all  beeu 
destroyed  by  the  ravages  of  those  enemies  to  an- 
cient documents,  the  rats  and  mice,  who  have  ap- 
propriated the  leaves  of  the  records  of  this  church 
to  their  own  comfort.  Audubon,  the  ornitholo- 
gist, was  served  once  in  the  same  manner,  when 
his  earliest  portfolio  leaves  were  all  ruined;  how- 
ever, he  could  replace  what  had  cost  him  three 
years'  toil  to  gather  together,  by  once  more  shoul- 
dering his  knapsack  and  gun,  and  returning  to  the 
fields  and  forests  for  a  renewed  supply.  But  there 
is  no  such  remedy  for  the  seeker  after  historical 
facts;  when  once  the  early  records  are  destroyed 
and  lost,  no  efforts  can  reproduce  them ;  diligent 
inquiry  and  search  was  made  to  obtain  at  least  a 
portion  of  the  records  of  this  church,  but  all  in 
vain,  the  work  of  destruction  was  done  eftectually. 

Coldwater  Church  was  at  one  time  the  oldest 
(jr^rman  religious  organization  in  Western  ISTorth 
Carolina;  it  had  a  pastor  even  before  the  Rev.  A. 
^N^ussmann  came  to  America  in  1773;  this  pastor 
was  the  Rev.  Mr.  Suther,  a  German  Reformed 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  405 

minister,  some  of  whose  descendants  are  still  living 
in  Concord,  ^N".  C,  and  are  worthy  members  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  there. 

In  Wheeler's  Historj^  of  North  Carolina,  vol.  ii, 
p.  11,  the  folloAviiig  record  in  Governor  Tryon's 
journal  occurs :  "  Sunday,  August  21st,  1768. 
Heard  Mr.  Luther,  a  Dutch  minister,  preach." 
This  is  a  very  brief  record,  but  it  contains  much 
information,  when  all  the  circumstances  connected 
with  it  are  considered.  Firstly^  the  place  was  near 
Major  Phifer's  residence,  Mecklenburg  (now  Ca- 
barrus) Count}',  where  Governor  Tryon  with  his 
suite  lodo^ed  from  the  19th  to  the  22d  of  Aus^ust. 
Secondly^  the  church  was  a  German  one,  called 
^' Dutch"  according  to  the  common  parlance  of 
that  day,  and  was  none  other  than  the  Coldwater 
Church,  which  was  then  the  nearest  German 
church  to  Major  Phifer's  residence.  Thirdly,  the 
minister's  name  was  Suther,  and  not  Luther, 
which  is  undoubted!}^  a  mistake  of  the  copyist  of 
the  Governor's  journal,  or  of  the  printer,  inasmuch 
as  the  letter  ''S,"  in  writing,  so  nearly  resembles 
the  letter  "L;"  for  no  minister  with  the  name 
"Luther"  ever  resided  in  that  vicinity,  and  it  is 
known  that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Suther  was  the  minister 
of  that  church  about  that  time.  Fourthly,  the  time 
dates  the  existence  of  the  Coldwater  Church  as  far 
back  as  1768. 

Now  whether  the  Lutherans  had,  at  that  time, 
a  common  right  in  the  property  of  that  church 
with  the  German  Reformed  is  not  known. 
Thirty  years  later  a  Lutheran  minister  occasion- 


406  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ally  preached  there,  at  least  in  performing  funeral 
services  in  that  church,  as  may  be  seen  from  the 
records  of  St.  John's  church-book.  This  minister 
was  the  Rev.  A.  [N".  Marcard,  then  the  pastor  of 
St.  John's  Church. 

In  the  minutes  of  the  ^orth  Carolina  Synod 
mention  is  first  made  of  this  church  in  the  year 
1814,  when  it  was  received  in  connection  with  the 
Synod,  giving  the  names  of  Philip  Cress  and 
Michael  Winecofi*  as  its  church  officers,  and  it  is 
exceedingly  probable  that  its  organization  as  a 
Lutheran  congregation,  worshiping  with  the  Ger- 
man Reformed,  dates  back  only  to  about  that  time. 
In  the  year  1843,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev. 
W.  G.  Harter,  the  Lutheran  cono:re^ation  with- 
drew  from  the  Coldwater  Church,  and  erected 
their  own  house  of  worship  in  the  town  of  Con- 
cord, adopting  the  name  of  St.  James'  Church, 
where  it  continues  to  exist  to  the  present  day. 

3.  Si.  MichaeVs  Church,  Lexington  District,  South 
Carolina. — This  congregation  is  likewise  compara- 
tively a  new  organization,  and  its  church  edifice 
is  better  known  as  "The  Blue  Church." 

The  congregation  originated  in  the  following 
manner:  A  number  of  members  of  Bethel  Church, 
on  High  Hill  Creek,  were  desirous  of  hearing  the 
Word  of  God  in  the  Enoflish  lano:uao|;e,  which  in- 
novation  being  met  with  much  opposition,  the 
friends  of  English  preaching  withdrew  and  wor- 
shiped for  a  time  in  a  school  house,  but  afterwards 
secured  a  portion  of  land  by  gift  or  otherwise,  and 
erected  their  own  church.    A  number  of  members 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  407 

from  old  Zlon's  Church  also  soon  connected  them- 
selves with  the  new  enterprise.  The  Rev.  God- 
frey Dreher  became  their  first  pastor,  and  tlieir 
first  communion  was  held  in  tlie  church  on  the 
fifth  Sunday  in  June,  1814.  It  was  admitted  into 
connection  with  the  IN'orth  Carolina  Synod,  Octo- 
ber 18th  of  the  same  year.  Its  elders  and  deacons 
at  that  time  were:  John  Wise,  John  Dreher, 
Samuel  Wingard,  and  Thomas  Shuler,  whose 
names  are  mentioned  in  the  minutes  of  the  Synod. 
Accordino^  to  a  resolution  of  the  North  Carolina 
Synod,  a  special  Conference  was  held  in  this 
church,  at  wdiich  Conference  the  Revs.  Storch, 
Miller  and  Shober,  from  l^orth  Carolina,  were 
present.  The  Lord's  day  services  were  held  in 
Bethel  Church,  April  29th,  1816,  "when  Rev. 
Charles  A.  Stork  opened  public  worship  by  preach- 
ing from  John  3  :  14, 15,  and  the  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller 
in  the  English  language  from  Matt.  21 :  43.  During 
the  first  sermon,  the  Rev.  G.  Dreher  and  Candi- 
date M.  Ranch  addressed  the  English  visitors  out 
of  doors,  and  during  the  second,  the  Rev.  G.  Shober 
addressed  an  assembly  of  negroes  near  the  church 
on  the  subject  of  Christianity,  and  afterwards 
preached  a  sermon  in  the  church  from  Matt.  13  : 
25,  in  the  German  language.  It  is  hoped  that 
among  that  great  concourse  of  people,  who  list- 
ened attentively  during  the  long  service,  some 
precious  seed  fell  on  good  ground.  It  was  then 
thought  advisable  that  the  meeting  of  Conference 
should  be  held  at  St.  Michael's  Church  at  nine 
o'clock,  Monday  morning."     The  above  extract 


408  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

is  taken  from  the  printed  minutes  of  that  special 
Conference,  and  is  herein  inserted,  because  this 
was  the  first  ecclesiastical  meeting  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  held  in  this  State.  The  conventions  of 
the  Corpus  Ecclesiasticum  preceded  it  some 
twenty-nine  years,  but  it  was  a  German  Reformed 
as  well  as  a  Lutheran  body. 

The  object  of  holding  this  Conference  was  to 
adjust  certain  difiiculties,  that  had  arisen  and  dis- 
turbed the  Lutheran  Church  in  South  Carolina, 
in  reference  to  the  baptism  of  the  children  of  un- 
worthy church  members  and  of  non-professors  of 
religion.  The  decision  arrived  at  was,  that  the 
children  of  all  such  members,  who  were  not  ex- 
pelled from  the  Church,  could  be  presented  by 
their  own  parents  for  baptism,  and  that  the  chil- 
dren of  all  others  were  likewise  to  be  baptized, 
provided  worthy  members  of  the  Church  acted 
as  sponsors,  and  presented  them  to  the  altar. 
Another  vexed  question  had  reference  to  the  col- 
ored population,  namely:  1.  When  should  they 
be  baptized  and  confirmed?  2.  Should  they  after- 
w\ards  be  immediately  admitted  to  the  communion 
or  remain  awhile  in  a  state  of  probation?  3. 
Should  they  belong  to  the  same  church  with  their 
masters,  or  be  at  liberty  to  select  a  church  for 
themselves?  4.  Should  they  bring  their  own  chil- 
dren to  baptism  themselves?  5.  The  marriage 
relation  was  recognized  and  strictly  enforced.  A 
resolution  was  then  also  passed,  requesting  Synod 
to  publish  in  the  minutes  of  every  year  the  list  of 
its  authorized  and  recognized  ministers. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOU  III    CAROLINA.  409 

4.  St.  MichaeUs  Church,  Iredell  County,  North  Caro- 
lina.— The  German  citizens  of  Iredell  County  came 
originally  from  Rowan  and  Cabarrus  Counties. 
All  the  productive  and  available  lands  in  these  two 
counties  had  been  preoccupied  by  their  forefathers, 
whose  descendants  were,  therefore,  compelled  to 
go  westward,  and  many  of  them  occupied  lands 
in  Iredell  that  were  still  vacant,  or  purchased 
farms  from  the  original  Scotch-Irish  settlers. 

This  influx  of  a  German  population  occurred 
about  the  close  of  the  last  or  commencement  of 
the  present  century,  and  owing  to  the  peculiarities 
of  their  settlement  here,  many  of  them  are  inter- 
married with  the  original  Scotch-Irish  colonists, 
and  nearly  all  are  more  or  less  scattered  over  the 
whole  of  that  country,  and  some  of  them  are  of 
necessity  located  rather  remotely  from  their  own 
house  of  worship. 

The  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  was  the  first  Lutheran 
minister  who  gathered  the  German  settlers  in  Ire- 
dell Count}^  into  a  congregation,  A.D.  1815.  This 
fact  is  ascertained  from  the  church  records,  as 
well  as  from  the  minutes  of  the  Synod  of  1815, 
when  that  congregation  was  admitted  under  the 
name  of  "New  Pearth."  The  church  land  was 
donated  by  Mr.  Daniel  Walcher,  and  w^as  given 
as  joint  property  for  the  use  of  both  the  Lutheran 
andEpiscopal  denominations, and  was  so  continued 
as  a  union  house  of  worship  for  several  years,  when 
the  Episcopalians  withdrew  and  erected  their  own 
church  a  few   miles  distant  from   St.    Michael's 

35 


410  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Church,  leaving  the  Lutheran  congregation  the 
sole  possessor  of  that  property. 

The  church  edifice  has  since  been  considerably 
enlarged,  and  is  located  on  a  pleasant  site  near 
the  public  road  leading  from  Charlotte  to  States- 
ville,  and  recently  the  "Atlantic,  Tennessee  and 
Ohio  Kail  road"  has  been  located  very  near  to  this 
church  and  its  graveyard.  Kev.  Mr.  Miller  contin- 
ued to  labor  here  for  six  years,  when  he  voluntarily 
disconnected  himself  from  the  Lutheran  Church, 
in  1821.  It  vras  in  this  congregation  that  the  Rev. 
Simeon  W.  Harkey,  D.D.  and  his  brothers,  who  are 
also  in  the  ministry,  were  born  and  reared  up  for 
enlarged  usefulness  in  the  Lutheran  Church.  Dr. 
Harkey  was  for  a  time  President  of  Illinois  State 
University;  many  interesting  circumstances  of  his 
early  life  are  still  related  by  his  former  schoolmates 
and  early  associates.  St.  Michael's  Church  has 
lost  heavily  by  the  removal  of  many  of  its  mem- 
bers, principally  to  the  State  of  Illinois. 

5.  McCohbirCs  Creek  Church,  3Iecklenhurg  County^ 
N,  C,  is  also  mentioned  in  the  minutes  of  the 
i^orth  Carolina  Synod,  as  having  been  received 
into  its  connection  in  1815.  Of  its  history  nothing 
is  known  to  the  writer;  it  is  probable,  that  this  is 
the  present "  Morning  Star  Church"  in  that  county, 
and  now  connected  with  the  Tennessee  Synod. 
There  are,  doubtless,  other  new  Lutheran  con- 
gregations which  were  organized  in  other  parts  of 
the  Carolinas  at  or  before  this  time,  but  as  they 
are  not  mentioned  in  the  minutes  of  the  Synod, 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  411 


and  no  other  records  are  at  hand,  nothing  can  be 
said  concerning  them. 


Section  8.  Continued  History  of  several  of  the  older 
Lutheran  Congregations  in  the  Carolinas. 

The  Lutheran  Church  in  the  interior  of  South 
Carohna  was  beginning  to  present  a  more  hope- 
ful appearance;  much  good  was  accompHshed  by 
the  hibors  of  its  young  ministers,  who  had  recently 
been  licensed  or  ordained  by  the  North  Carolina 
Synod;  the  Synod  itself  was  also  exerting  a  whole- 
some influence  upon  those  churches  in  South 
Carolina  that  were  connected  with  it.  In  New- 
berry District  the  Rev.  F.  J.  Wallern  was  still 
laboring,  but  he  and  his  congregations  remained 
isolated  and  uninfluenced  by  synodical  counsel 
and  authority,  consequently  no  improvement  was 
manifested  in  their  condition ;  one  congregation, 
however,  placed  itself  under  the  care  of  Synod  in 
1814,  whose  elders'  and  deacons'  names  have  been 
mentioned,  yQt  it  is  not  stated  who  was  its  pastor 
at  that  time. 

Soon  after  the  dealh  of  Eev.  C.  E.  Bernhardt,  in 
1809,  the  churches  in  Lexington  District,  on  both 
sides  of  the  Saluda  River,  were  served  by  the  Rev. 
Godfrey  Dreher,  who  was  licensed  by  the  North 
Carolina  Synod  in  1810,  and  labored  there  for  a 
number  of  years,  having  still  the  charge  of  Zion's, 
St.  Peter's,  and  other  more  recently  organized 
congregations,  as  late  as  1848,  at  about  which  time 


412  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

he  resisrned.  The  Rev.  J.  Y.  Meetze  also  resided 
and  preached  in  this  District,  serving  several  con- 
gregations; and  after  the  year  1814,  the  Rev.  J. 
P.  Franklow,  who  resigned  his  charge  in  Orange- 
burg District,  likewise  labored  in  Lexington,  so 
that  the  cono^reo-ations  in  this  District  were  for  the 
time  well  supplied  with  ministerial  labor. 

The  Sandy  Run  congregation  was  supplied  once 
a  month  with  the  means  of  grace  by  Revs.  Dreher, 
Franklow  and  Ranch,  from  and  after  the  year 
1812;  Rev.  Franklow,  however,  soon  afterwards 
resigned;  whether  Rev.  Ranch  continued  to  preach 
there  any  length  of  time  is  not  stated,  but  Rev. 
Dreher  remained  the  pastor  of  that  church  until 
the  close  of  the  year  1821. 

The  St.  Matthew's  charge  in  Orangeburg  Dis- 
trict was  supplied  with  a  pastor  in  the  Rev.  J.  P. 
Franklow,  who  remained  in  office  in  that  charge 
until  1814,  when  he  resigned,  and  Rev.  M.  Rauch 
became  hi,s  successor.  By  resolution  of  the  North 
Carolina  Synod,  he  also  took  the  oversight  of  the 
two  congregations  in  Barnwell  District. 

The  Lutheran  church  in  Charleston  was  vacant 
from  the  year  1811,  but  was  supplied  with  the 
means  of  grace,  six  months'at  a  time,  b}^  several 
Episcopal  clergymen,  until  the  Rev.  John  Bachman, 
from  the  State  of  ^N'ew  York,  became  the  pastor  iu 
January,  1815.  Of  his  arrival  in  Charleston  and 
of  his  pastoral  labors  more  will  be  stated  in  the 
next  section. 

The  various  churches  in  Lincoln  County,  N.  C, 
were  served  with  the  pastoral  labors  of  Revs.  R. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  413 

J.  Miller,  David  Ilenkel  and  Daniel  Moser;  the 
latter  became  the  successor  of  Eev.  Philip  Henkel, 
who  had  resigned  and  accepted  the  call  to  the 
Tennessee  congregations,  made  vacant  by  the 
death  of  Kev.  6.  Z.  H.  Smith. 

The  two  congregations  in  Cabarrus  County  were 
supplied  by  the  Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch ;  St.  John's 
Church  w^as  served  as  a  part  of  his  regular  charge, 
whilst  the  Cold  water  congregation  received  occa- 
sional visits  from  him.  The  other  now  existing 
congregations  in  this  county  were  not  organized  at 
that  time. 

In  Rowan  County  Rev.  Storch  was  laboring  still 
at  Organ  Church,  in  the  bounds  of  which  he  then 
resided;  it  is  probable  that  he  also  served  Savage's 
or  Sewits'  Church,  now  called  Lutheran  Chapel; 
but  the  Union  or  Pine  Church  he  had  resigned, 
and  the  Rev.  J.  W.  Meyer  became  its  pastor. 

St.  John's  Church,  in  Salisbury,  was  at  this  time 
still  vacant;  it  had  become  a  neglected  field,  and, 
according  to  the  provisions  in  the  title  granted  by 
Mr.  Beard,  the  Episcopalians  occupied  the  church, 
since  they  had  no  house  of  worship  of  their  own, 
and  the  few  remaining  Lutherans  worshiped  with 
them. 

The  churches  in  Davidson  County  were  served 
faithfully  by  their  pastor,  Rev.  Lewis  Markert, 
from  1805  to  1816,  when  he  removed  to  the  State 
of  Indiana,  where  he  continued  to  labor  until  the 
Lord  called  him  home,  November  22d,  1850. 
After  the  removal  of  Rev.  Markert,  and  at  the 
request  of  the  vacant  congregations,  the  Synod,  in 


414  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

1816,  appointed  Rev.  G.  Sliober  to  supply  two  of 
the  churches  of  that  chars^e,  whilst  the  reniainino; 
two  were  placed  under  the  care  of  Rev.  J.  W. 
Meyer.  In  1817,  Catechet  Daniel  Walcher  was 
sent  by  Synod  to  labor  in  these  vacant  churches, 
wdiere  he  remained  until  1821,  when  he  removed 
to  Pendleton  County,  Virginia. 

In  the  year  1810,  the  Rev.  Jacob  Scherer  became 
the  pastor  of  the  churches  in  Guilford  and  Orange 
Counties,  which  had  been  vacant  about  four  years, 
but  through  the  energetic  and  faithful  labors  of 
Rev.  Scherer' s  ministry,  this  charge  became  one  of 
the  most  promising  in  the  State.  His  catechetical 
instructions  were  speciallj^  blessed.  At  one  time 
a  certain  young  man  came  to  him  and  declared 
that  "  he  would  not  for  the  whole  world  have  been 
without  these  instructions,  for  by  means  of  them 
he  had  found  \vhat  was  w^orth  more  than  the  world 
to  him."  The  Rev.  Jacob  Grieson  was  licensed 
to  preach  the  gospel  in  1810,  and  labored  as  an 
assistant  pastor  with  Rev.  Scherer,  accomplishing 
much  good,  and  was  always  willing  and  prepared 
to  lighten  the  burdens  and  labors  of  the  regular 
pastor  in  that  extensive  charge. 

The  congregations  in  Forsythe  County,  near 
Salem,  IST.  C,  were  greatly  built  up  by  the  efficient 
labors  of  their  first  pastor,  the  Rev.  Gottlieb  Scho- 
ber,  who  commenced  his  ministry  there  in  1810, 
and  continued  in  charge  of  these  churches  to  the 
close  of  his  life,  June  27th,  1838. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  415 


Section  9,  Arrival  of  Rev.  John  Bachman  as  Pastor 
of  St.  John^s  Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston^ 
S.  (7.,  and  his  Bejwrt  on  the  State  of  the  Coun- 
try and  of  the  Condition  of  the  LiUhei^an  Church 
in  America  in  the  year  1815. 

At  last  we  Lave  readied  that  period  in  tlie  his- 
tory of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas 
which  comes  within  the  range  of  still  living  wit- 
nesses, one  of  whom  is  the  Rev.  John  Bachman, 
D.D.,  LL.D.,  now  in  his  eighty-third  year,  and  in 
the  fifty-eighth  year  of  his  ministrj^  in  Charleston, 
S.  C,  as  pastor  of  St.  John's  Lutheran  Church; 
and  though  no  longer  able  to  preach  the  gospel, 
he  still  manifests  the  liveliest  interest  in  the  wel- 
fare and  prosperity  in  the  Lutheran  Church,  both 
in  his  own  Synod  and  in  America;  and  has  but 
recently  (March  28th,  1872)  been  permitted,  in  a 
reclining  posture,  to  participate  in  the  dedication 
of  St.  Matthew's  German  Lutheran  Church  of 
Charleston. 

It  is  not  designed  to  give  a  sketch  of  Dr.  Bach- 
man's  life  and  ministry  in  this  section  of  this  work, 
as  it  would  require  more  than  a  few  pages,  a!id 
belongs  properly  to  biographical  literature;  be- 
sides, it  would  bring  at  once  the  history  of  Luther- 
anism  in  Charleston  to  its  present  date,  and  disar- 
range the  entire  plan  of  this  work.  Rev.  Dr. 
Bachman's  name,  life  and  labors  will  now  accom- 
pany and  be  included  in  the  history  of  the  Jju- 
theran  Church  in  the  Carolinas  to  the  present  day, 


416  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

as  he  is  inseparably  connected  with  it  as  one  of  its 
most  useful  and  prominent  ministers. 

On  Sunday,  January  10th,  1858,  Dr.  Bachman 
preached  an  anniversary  sermon  to  his  congrega- 
tion, on  the  occasion  of  his  having  then  been  forty- 
three  years  their  pastor.  This  sermon  has  been 
published,  and  furnishes  the  Church  the  most  in- 
teresting incidents  in  his  life  and  ministry,  besides 
embracing  a  report  on  the  state  of  the  country 
and  of  the  condition  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
America  in  the  year  1815.  Truly  tliat  was  the 
day  of  small  things  to  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
this  country,  when  her  ministry  numbered  not 
quite  one  hundred,  and  there  were  still  but  three 
Synods  in  the  United  States, — the  Kew  York,  the 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  Korth  Carolina  Synods. 

The  following  extracts  are  taken  from  Dr.  Bach- 
man's  anniversary  sermon : 

"On  the  10th  of  January,  1815,1  arrived  in  this 
city  for  the  purpose  of  taking  charge  of  this  con- 
gregation. A  meeting  of  the  vestr^^  of  the  church 
took  place  on  the  12th,  two  days  afterwards,  and 
the  charge  of  the  congregation  was,  in  due  form, 
committed  to  my  trust.  This  day,  then,  is  the 
forty-third  anniversary  of  my  arrival  to  engage  in 
the  ministry  in  this  city. 

"  On  the  10th,  the  dny  of  my  arrival,  I  attended 
the  first  funeral  service,  which  was  performed  by 
another  clergyman,  who  had  previously  been  en- 
gaged, and  on  the  16th  I  performed  the  first  bap- 
tismal service. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  417 


"i^  Antecedents. 

"I  was  licensed  by  the  Lutheran  Sj-nod  ofll^ew 
York  in  1813,  having  previousl}^  been  elected  pas- 
tor of  three  congregations  in  the  vicinity  of  my 
own  neighborhood,  in  the  county  of  Rensselaer, 
E".  Y.,  where  I  would  have  gladly  spent  the  re- 
mainder of  my  days,  among  the  friends  and  rela- 
tives of  my  boyhood  and  early  youth.  A  hemor- 
rhage of  the  lungs,  however,  of  which  I  had  been 
attacked  whilst  at  colleo^e,  w^as  makins^  a  fearful 
inroad  on  my  health,  and  I  was  advised  b}^  my 
physicians  to  seek  relief  in  a  more  southern  cli- 
mate. A  call  had  been  sent  from  this  con^-reo^a- 
tion  to  the  President  of  the  Synod  of  'Eqw  York, 
Dr.  Quitman,  with  a  request  that  he  should  rec- 
ommend some  clergyman  who  might  be  adapted 
to  this  field  of  labor.  He  was  the  father  of  the 
present  General  Quitman,  and  was  regarded  as 
one  of  the  most  learned  and  eloquent  men  of  his 
day.  He  and  my  ever  faithful  friend.  Dr.  Mayer, 
of  Philadelphia,  proposed  my  name  to  this  congre- 
gation. They  immediately  sent  me  a  call  to  be- 
come their  pastor.  After  consultation  with  my 
family  and  congregation,  they  reluctantly  gave 
me  leave  of  absence  for  nine  months,  during  which 
time  the  hope  was  expressed  that  my  health 
would  be  sufficiently  restored  to  enable  me  to  re- 
sume my  ministerial  labors  among  them.  As  the 
Lutheran  Church  had  scarcely  an  existence  in  our 
Southern  States,  and  as  we  had  no  Synod  here,  an 


418  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

extra  meeting  of  the  Synod  of  I^ew  York  was  con- 
vened in  December,  1814,  at  Khinebeck,  Dutch- 
ess Count}^  the  place  of  my  nativity,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  ordaining  me.  The  ordination  services 
were  performed  by  Dr.  Quitman  and  the  other 
officers  of  the  Synod  in  the  Lutheran  church  at 
Rhinebeck,  where  I  had  been  baptized  in  infancy. 
Without  returning  home,  I  proceeded  on  my  way 
to  this  city. 


"27ie  State  of  our  Country, 

"  We  were  in  the  midst  of  a  three  years'  war 
with  the  most  powerful  of  foreign  nations.  Fear- 
ful battles  had  occurred  on  our  Northern  frontiers, 
on  the  ocean  and  on  the  lakes.  The  traces  of  de- 
vastation and  death  were  visible  in  the  half-cov- 
ered graves  along  the  highway  between  Baltimore 
and  Washington.  The  blackened  walls  of  the 
Capitol  at  Washington,  and  the  waste  and  destruc- 
tion in  every  part  of  the  city,  presented  an  awful 
picture  of  the  horrors  of  war.  On  my  arrival  here 
I  found  our  citizens  working  on  the  lines  of  de- 
fence thrown  around  the  landside  of  our  city — 
even  ladies  went  there  with  hoes  and  spades  to 
cheer  the  citizen  soldiers  by  their  presence,  their 
countenance  and  example,  and  I  too  joined,  at  least 
in  form,  for  it  was  our  common  country  that  was 
to  be  defended.  In  the  meantime  the  battle  of  E'ew 
Orleans  had  been  fought,  on  the  8th  of  January, 
and  a  treaty  of  peace  had  been  signed  at  Ghent; 


IN    NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  419 

but  these  important  events  were  not  known  until 
some  time  afterwards.  The  war  had  fallen  heavily 
on  our  Southern  people.  The  principal  staple  of 
our  commerce,  cotton,  had  for  several  years,  during 
the  embargo  and  war,  been  sold  at  a  mere  nominal 
value,  and  was  stored  away  in  various  depositories 
in  King  Street.  Our  city  was  then  only  a  village 
compared  with  its  present  growth,  and  the  grass 
was  growing  in  our  most  public  streets.  Men  had 
the  necessaries  of  life,  and  these  were  cheap;  but 
all  the  means  of  enterprise  and  all  the  avenues  to 
wealth  were  closed  up.  Fortunately  men  were 
driven  to  the  necessity  of  manufacturing  their  nec- 
essary articles,  and  they  were  compelled  to  deny 
themselves  luxuries;  they  studied  economy,  and 
hence  there  was  not  much  suffering  among  our 
people  from  any  want  of  the  necessaries  of  life. 
But  the  constant  dread  of  invasion,  the  sufferings 
and  dangers  to  which  our  friends  who  were  in  the 
army  and  at  sea  were  constantly  exposed,  kept  the 
minds  of  our  citizens  in  an  unsettled  and  feverish 
state.  The  means  of  traveling  were  very  differ- 
ent from  what  they  are  now  in  the  days  of  steamers 
and  railroads.  The  roads  were  almost  impassable; 
as  an  evidence  of  this,  I  would  state  that  with  the 
exception  of  a  Sabbath  on  which  I  preached  for 
Dr.  Mayer,  of  Philadelphia,  I  came  in  the  regular 
stage  line,  which  traveled  day  and  night,  and  ar- 
rived at  Charleston  on  the  morning  of  the  twenty- 
ninth  day  after  leaving  Dutchess  County,  which  is 
a  hundred  miles  north  of  the  city  of  JSTew  York. 


420  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

In  the  meantime  our  vehicles  were  either  broken 
or  overturned  eight  times  on  the  journey. 


"  The  State  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America  at 
the  time  of  my  Arrival  at  the  South. 

"The  Lutheran  Church  in  America  was  at  a 
very  low  ebb.  There  were  only  three  Synods,  one 
in  ITew  York,  composed  of  seven  ministers;  one 
in  Pennsylvania,  which  in  point  of  numbers  was 
considerably  larger;  and  a  small  Synod  in  il^orth 
Carolina."  (In  the  ;N"orth  Carolina  Synod  there 
were,  October  17th,  1814,  the  last  meeting  of 
Synod  previous  to  Dr.  Bachman's  arrival,  nine 
ordained  ministers  and  eleven  licentiates,  twenty 
ministers  in  all.)  "Our  ministers,  with  very  few 
exceptions,  performed  service  exclusively  in  the 
German  language.  This  Avas  a  great  error,  inas- 
much as  it  excluded  from  the  Church  the  descend- 
ants of  Lutherans,  who  had  by  education  and 
association  adopted  tlie  language  of  the  country. 
Our  doctrines  were  not  objectionable  to  them,  but 
they  could  not  understand  the  language  in  which 
they  were  promulgated.  Thus  the  progress  of  the 
Church  was  greatly  retarded  in  consequence  of 
the  bigoted  attachment  of  our  ancestors,  and  es- 
pecially their  clergy,  to  a  foreign  language.  Since 
the  introduction  of  the  English  language  into  our 
ministrations  the  Church  has  made  rapid  progress. 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  421 


"  The  State  of  our  Church  in  Charleston^  South  Caro- 
lina^ and  in  the  other  Southern  States. 

"When  I  arrived  here  the  congregation  wor- 
shiped in  a  small  wooden  church,  situated  in  the 
rear  of  the  present  church;  it  was  an  antiquated 
building  of  a  peculiar  construction,  resembling 
some  of  the  old  churches  in  the  rural  districts  of 
Germany.  The  congregation  was  composed  of 
Germans,  who,  during  the  stormy  season  of  the 
Eevolution,  had  been  the  strenuous  advocates  and 
defenders  of  the  rights  of  their  adopted  country. 

"  The  services  continued  for  many  years  to  be 
conducted  in  the  German  language.  The  Kev. 
Mr.  Faber,  the  younger  of  two  brothers,  who  were 
pastors  of  this  congregation,  introduced  the  ser- 
vice in  the  English  language.  After  his  death, 
there  was  for  several  years  no  minister  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  presiding  over  this  congregation. 
I  have  scarcely  a  doubt  that  the  congregation  was 
preserved  from  total  annihilation  througli  the  pious 
zeal  and  devotion  of  the  venerable  Jacob  Sass,  who, 
for  a  long  series  of  years,  was  the  president  of  the 
vestry,  and  who  was  one  of  the  purest  and  best 
men  with  whom  it  has  been  my  privilege  ever  to 
associate. 

"It  does  not  become  me  to  speak  of  my  own 
labors  in  this  congregation ;  suffice  it  to  say,  that 
I  feel  how  imperfect  are  the  best  eitbrts  of  man, 
and  wherever  there  has  been  any  success,  let  us 
ascribe  all  the  praise  and  glory  to  God,  to  whom 


422  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

thej  legitimately  belong.  Men  are  but  the  instru- 
ments in  His  hands,  and  He,  the  Master,  often 
gives  the  blessing  whilst  the  servant  is  unworthy. 

"  For  many  years  the  Germans  of  our  city  formed 
a  part  of  this  congregation ;  I  preached  for  them 
in  the  German  language,  at  first,  once  a  month, 
and  for  some  years  afterwards,  occasionally  in  the 
evenings.  For  nearly  twenty  years  I  preached 
three  sermons  on  each  Sabbath.  I  now  feel  con- 
vinced from  experience  that  this  labor  is  beyond 
the  capacity  of  most  constitutions,  especially  in 
our  debilitating  climate.  In  the  autumn  of  1837, 
my  health  and  strength  failed  me.  My  congrega- 
tion, feeling  a  deep  interest  in  the  preservation  of 
my  life  and  the  restoration  of  my  enfeebled  health, 
unanimously  requested  me  to  remove  for  a  season 
from  my  field  of  labor.  I  left  my  home  and  peo- 
ple in  1838,  believing  that  I  looked  upon  the  land 
of  my  nativity  for  the  last  time,  and  that  I  was 
destined  to  breathe  my  last  breath  among  strangers 
in  a  foreign  land.  I  was  absent  eight  months, 
during  which  time  I  wandered  nearly  over  all  Eu- 
rope, and  was  received  with  a  sympathy,  kindness, 
and  untiring  hospitality  that  have  left  deep  traces 
of  gratitude  on  ni}^  heart.  I  returned  in  January, 
1839,  with  health  partially  restored.  For  a  few 
years,  until  my  health  was  re-established,  this  con- 
gregation engaged  an  assistant  minister. 

"I  cannot  here  withhold  from  you  the  candid 
admission  that  the  establishment  of  our  Church  in 
the  South  was  a  source  of  greater  anxiety  to  my 
mind  than  even  the  prosperity  of  my  own  congre- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  423 

gation.  I  came  as  a  pioneer  in  our  holy  cause. 
For  several  years  I  held  my  membership  with  the 
Synod  of  Ne\Y  York.  We  had  very  few  materials 
in  the  South  from  which  the  Church  could  be 
built  up;  no  emigrants  from  abroad. 

'^  There  were  Lutherans  in  Lexington  and 
Orangeburg  Districts,  but  they  were  almost  desti- 
tute of  the  means  of  grace.  There  had  been  a 
church  in  Savannah,  erected  before  the  Revolution, 
that  belonged  to  the  Lutherans,  but  it  was  burnt 
down  in  1797.  This  congregation  contributed  $500 
towards  rebuilding  it;  no  congregation  was,  how- 
ever, subsequently  organized,  and  the  small  build- 
ing was  occupied  as  a  Sunday-school  by  another 
denomination.  They  were  visited,  a  congregation 
was  organized  from  the  materials  which  could  be 
collected,  and  a  clergyman,  who  had  been  raised 
up  in  this  congregation,  became  their  pastor. 
They  have  now  a  new  church  and  a  flourishing 
congregation.  Ebenezer  was  also  visited.  The 
pastor  there,  who  seemed  not  aware  that  Luther- 
anism  had  any  existence  in  the  South,  had  taken 
a  license  in  another  Church.  He  soon  became  a 
co-worker  with  us,  and  they  have  now  two  pastors 
and  several  churches  in  the  neighborhood.  We 
at  length  began  to  discuss  the  propriety  of  form- 
ing a  Synod  in  our  State.  We  had  no  theological 
school,  we  had  but  three  or  four  pastors  who  were 
able  to  perform  duty,  and  the  few  Lutherans  that 
remained  were  either  poor  or  in  very  moderate 
circumstances. 

"  On  my  first  arrival  here  I  became  a  member 


424  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

of  the  G-erman  Friendly  Society,  which  was  then 
composed  of  nearly  one  hundred  members;  these 
have  all  passed  awaj-,  and  I  am  now  the  oldest 
member.  Of  the  few  communicants  I  found  in 
this  church  at  my  arrival,  one  only  is  now  alive. 
The  vestrymen,  whose  names  were  signed  to  my 
call,  were:  Jacob  Sass,  President;  Abraham 
Markley,  John  Strohecker,  Henry  Ilorlbeck, 
Jacob  Strobel,  J.  E.  Scliirmer,  Benjamin  A.  Mark- 
ley,  Jacob  Eckhardt,  Sr.,  and  John  Strobel.  War- 
dens :  J.  M.  Iloff,  C.  C.  Philips,  Adolph  Beckman, 
and  Anthony  A.  Pelzer.  All  these  have  gone  to 
their  account. 

*'  Of  the  committee  of  twenty-one  who,  in  1815, 
reported  on  the  expediency  of  building  this  church, 
all  are  dead.  Of  the  pastors  who  occupied  the 
pulpits  of  our  city  on  my  arrival,  not  one  is  now 
living.  Of  the  managers  of  the  Bible  Society,  who 
met  me  in  1815, 1  only  am  left,  and  of  its  members 
I  am  the  oldest  on  their  record.  At  our  first  con- 
firmation in  1816,  of  sixty-four  persons,  who  were 
then  dedicated  to  God,  nine  only  are  now  alive. 

"I  have  given  you  a  very  brief  and  imperfect 
sketch  of  the  days  that  are  past  in  my  long  min- 
\stvy.  Time  w^ill  not  permit  me  to  enter  into  any 
details;  they  would  fill  volumes.  Little  now  re- 
mains of  that  thread  of  life,  which  has  been  spun 
out  in  the  midst  of  you.  I  would  not  wish  to  re- 
call that  life,  unless  it  could  be  spent  in  greater 
usefulness  to  you  and  to  others,  and  I  trust,  through 
the  mercy  of  that  Savior  who  died  for  a  fallen 
world,  I  will  be  prepared  to  resign  it  cheerfully 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  425 

into  the  hands  of  that  God  who  gave  it,  whenever 
He  shall  see  fit  to  call  me  hence.  This  congrega- 
tion was  the  only  one  of  which  I  have  had  charge 
since  my  ordination.  To  all  invitations  from  other 
sources  in  the  Church  and  seats  of  learning — offer- 
ing higher  pecuniary  advantages — I  did  not  hesi- 
tate a  moment  in  giving  a  negative  reply." 

Such  matter  in  Kev.  Dr.  Bachman's  sermon, 
which  was  not  strictly  of  a  historical  character,  or 
which  had  been  quoted  in  other  parts  of  this  book, 
in  its  proper  chronological  position,  has  been 
omitted ;  other  historical  data,  brought  out  in  the 
Doctor's  discourse,  but  referring  to  a  later  period, 
will  find  their  place  in  some  of  the  succeeding 
chapters. 


Section  10.   The  Ordination  Question^  and  Opposition 
to  the  Licensure  of  Candidates  for  the  31inistry. 

The  principal  transactions  of  the  North  Carolina 
Synod  during  the  year  1816,  were  certain  reports 
and  resolutions  on  the  question  of  ordination, 
which  were  occasioned  as  follows: 

In  consequence  of  the  great  want  of  ministers, 
and  in  order  to  preserve  harmony  and  uniformity 
with  the  Pennsylvania  Synod,  the  licensure  system 
was  adopted  also  by  tlie  Synod  of  North  Carolina. 
This  system  is  altogether  an  American  feature,  so 
far  as  the  Lutheran  Church  is  concerned,  and 
arose  entirely  on  account  of  the  great  paucity  and 
want  of  ministers  of  the  gospel  in  this  country. 

36 


426  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

The  various  Lutheran  congregations  which  had 
been  organized  in  America,  besought  the  different 
Sjnods  to  furnish  them  preachers  or  pastors;  but 
what  could  the  Synods  do  towards  answering 
these  numerous  and  repeated  calls  made  upon 
them?  Few  ministers  came  or  were  sent  from 
Germany,  and  no  universitj^  or  college  had  as  yet 
been  established  for  the  education  of  candidates 
for  the  ministry  by  the  Lutheran  Church  in  this 
country;  it  was,  therefore,  thought  expedient  to 
license  persons  who  could  exhort  and  catechize,  to 
take  cliarge  of  these  vacant  churches,  at  the  same 
time  making  it  the  duty  of  the  ordained  ministers 
residing  in  the  vicinity  to  administer  the  sacra- 
ments as  frequently  as  possible  in  those  congrega- 
tions. These  exhorters  were  called  catechets.  A 
course  of  study  was  prescribed  for  them  in  Latin, 
Greek  and  theology,  to  be  studied  privately  or 
with  some  of  the  older  ministers;  as  soon  as  they 
stood  a  fair  examination,  they  were  advanced  in 
their  ministerial  standing  and  received  license,  to 
be  renewed  every  year,  to  administer  all  the  ordi- 
nances of  the  Church.  They  were  called  candi- 
dates, and  were  obliged  to  continue  their  studies, 
report  their  nnnisterial  acts  to  Synod,  bring  a  writ- 
ten sermon  annuallj^  for  examination,  and,  when- 
ever the}^  passed  a  good  examination  on  their 
studies,  character  and  ministerial  usefulness,  were 
solemnly  ordained  to  the  gospel  ministry.  They 
w^ere  then  called  pastors,  enjoj'ing  all  the  privileges 
of  the  older  ministers.  This  arrangement  was  re- 
garded as  an  educational  one,  and  not  as  having 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH  CAEOLINA.  427 

established  different  grades  or  orders  of  the  min- 
istry. 

There  now  arose  in  Lincohi  County,  'N,  C.  a 
great  opposition  to  this  system,  because  the  candi- 
dates were  authorized  to  perform  all  ministerial 
acts  without  having  been  prev^iously  ordained;  a 
long  statement,  covering  more  than  three  pages 
of  the  minutes  of  Synod  for  1816,  is  devoted  to 
this  subject,  from  which  the  following  extracts  are 
made: 

"Upon  the  adoption  of  the  report  (on  the  licen- 
sure of  a  number  of  candidates),  a  sad  opposition 
manifested  itself  from  Lincoln  County,  and,  under 
the  pretext  that  disturbances  had  been  caused  in 
said  county  by  the  impression  that  it  was  anti- 
christian  for  any  one  to  administer  the  sacraments 
without  ordination,  it  was  vehemently  insisted 
upon  that  the  candidates  be  ordained."  Here  fol- 
lows a  lengthy  statement  of  the  reasons  why  the 
Synod  adopted  and  continued  the  licensure  sys- 
tem, namely:  that  it  had  been  a  blessing  to  the 
Church,  and  that  the  Synod  wished  to  conform  also 
in  this  particular  usage  to  the  long-established 
practice  of  their  brethren  in  Pennsylvania.  The 
report  of  the  Pennsylvania  Synod  on  this  subject, 
as  found  in  its  minutes  of  1814,  is  also  given,  which 
report  reads  as  follows: 

"Upon  motion,  the  ordained  ministers  were 
called  upon  to  express  their  opinion  on  the  ques- 
tion proposed  by  the  (North)  Carolina  Ministerium, 
namely.  '  Have  candidates  the  right  to  j)erform  the  Ac- 
tus 31i7iisteriales  loithout  a  i^revious  laying  on  of  hands  V 


428  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Some  expressed  their  opinions  verbally,  others  in 
writing.     It  was  unanimously — 

'' Resolved,  That,  according  to  the  testimony  of 
the  Bible  and  the  history  of  the  Church,  a  written 
authority  is  equally  as  valid  as  the  imposition  of 
hands,  that  our  ministerial  arrangement  is  not  in 
opposition  to  the  principles  of  the  Evangelical  Lu- 
theran Church,  and  that,  therefore,  licensed  can- 
didates can  perform  all  Actus  Mhiisteriales  with 
a  good  conscience."  The  Secretary  of  the  I^orth 
Carolina  Synod  adds  yet  this  remark  to  the  above 
resolution  of  the  Pennsylvania  Synod:  "At  this 
Synod  twentj'-two  ordained  ministers  and  twenty- 
nine  candidates  were  present,  and  all  were  agreed 
on  this  subject ;  their  resolutions  and  opinions  were 
sent  to  us  in  writing  in  1814;  we  should,  there- 
fore, be  uniform  in  practice,  and  one  or  two  other- 
wise thinking  individuals  among  us  should  yield 
that  much  from  motives  of  love. 

"All,  however,  was  of  no  avail;  therefore,  upon 
motion  of  Rev.  Shober,  it  was  resolved  to  make 
the  following  alteration  for  one  year  only:  that  if 
the  present  candidates  can  pass  through  their  this 
year's  examination,  their  license  be  handed  them 
publicly  before  the  congregation,  after  having  af- 
firmatively answered  that  they  would  observe  all 
what  the  Bible  and  the  Auo-sburs;  Confession  re- 
quires  of  a  minister,  and  that  in  the  name  of  the 
Church  a  blessing  be  pronounced  upon  them  with 
imposition  of  hands. 

"The  President  (Rev.  Mr.  Storch),  protested 
openly   against    this   innovation;    the    resolution 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  429 

was,  nevertheless,  adopted.  And,  inasmuch  as 
the  President  could  not  conscientiously  perform 
this  ceremony,  he  requested  Rev.  Shober  to  attend 
to  this  duty  for  him."  A  fear  is  also  expressed  in 
the  minutes,  that  all  this  would  eventually  cause 
a  division  in  the  Church. 

At  the  next  meeting  of  Synod,  in  1817,  the  sub- 
ject came  up  again,  and  was  finally  disposed  of  by 
vote.  Rev.  R.  J.  Miller  being  the  only  one  who 
voted  in  the  negative,  namely,  against  the  licen- 
sure of  candidates. 

From  all  this  we  can  also  arrive  at  the  number 
of  Lutheran  ministers  in  the  United  States  in  1814. 
The  Pennsylvania  Synod,  51  present,  probably 
only  a  few  absent  at  that  meeting;  the  I^ew  York 
Synod,  7;  and  the  IN'orth  Carolina  Synod,  21; 
Total,  71).  Suppose  we  allow  6  absentees  to  the 
Pennsylvania  Synod,  then  we  have  85  Lutheran 
ministers  in  1814  in  this  country.  This  number 
also  agrees  with  the  statement  made  by  Rev.  Dr. 
Hazelius,  in  an  inaugural  address. 


Section  11.  The  Literary  Institution  in  Tennessee 
for  the  Education  of  Ministers ;  and  the  Publi- 
cation by  authority  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
of  a  book  called  '•'-  Luther  J'' 

lu  East  Tennessee  Lutheranism  was  spreading 
rapidly;  three  new  congregations,  named  Union, 
Hopeful  and  Lick  Creek,  were  organized,  and 
connected   themselves  with   the  Synod  in  1817; 


430  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

and  ill  this  State,  where  a  few  years  ago  there  was 
but  one  minister,  the  Rev.  C.  Z.  H.  Smith,  there 
w^ere  now  four  laborers,  namely.  Revs.  Philip 
Henkel,  Jacob  Zink,  Adam  Miller  and  Joseph 
E.  Bell;  the  last  mentioned  was  a  good  classical 
scholar,  and  was  received  as  a  catechet  in  1816, 
in  accordance  with  his  own  request,  and  because 
he  could  not  be  present  at  Synod  that  year;  the 
next  year,  however,  being  present,  he  was  regu- 
larly licensed  as  a  candidate. 

In  1817,  Revs.  Philip  Henkel  and  Jos.  E.  Bell, 
commenced  a  classical  and  theological  seminary 
on  their  own  responsibility,  at  which  the  Synod 
w^as  greatly  rejoiced,  for  it  was  high  time  that 
something  was  done  in  that  directicMi.  A  report 
on  this  institution,  and  the  action  of  the  Synod  in 
reference  to  it,  are  here  presented. 

"Rev.  PhiHp  Henkel  reported,  that  in  Green 
County,  in  the  State  of  Tennessee,  a  seminary,  on 
a  small  scale,  was  established  under  his  and  Rev. 
Bell's  supervision,  in  which  theolog}^,  the  Greek, 
Latin,  German  and  English  languages  are  taught, 
and  in  which  Rev.  Bell  is  the  principal  teacher.  In 
accordance  with  a  report,  said  seminary  was  re- 
ceived with  joy  under  the  counsel  and  aid  of 
Synod,  with  the  confident  expectation  that  this 
small  beginning,  by  the  help  of  God,  located  in 
so  healthy  and  cheap  a  region  of  countrj^,  this  insti- 
tution, so  long  and  earnestly  desired,  may  prosper 
in  such  a  manner,  that  many  well-qualified  minis- 
ters and  missionaries  may  be  educated  as  preachers 
of  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Jesus  in  all  parts  of  the 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  431 

world,  who  will  be  prepared  to  give  to  every  man 
a  reason  of  the  hope  that  is  in  them.  Thousands 
of  the  present  and  future  generations  will  then 
thank  both  those  who  have  been  instructed  in  that 
institution,  as  well  as  those  who  have  contributed 
their  gifts  for  the  support  of  this  new  enterprise,  &c. 

"A  letter  was  also  read  to  Synod  from  Rev.  Mr. 
Bachman,  pastor  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina, 
in  which  he  expresses  his  joy  and  desire  to  labor 
in  harmony  with  us,  and  greatly  desires  to  see 
that  a  seminary  for  the  education  of  ministers  be 
established,  and  that  his  congregation  would  gladly 
contribute  towards  the  support  of  the  enterprise; 
furthermore,  that  the  l^ew  York  Ministerium,  to 
which  he  belongs,  would  willingly  aid  us  with 
missionaries,  and  that  he  regrets  that,  at  this 
season  of  the  year,  he  cannot  be  present  with  us. 

"The  reading  of  this  letter  was  listened  to  with 
much  rejoicing;  and  as  the  time  for  the  meeting 
of  Sj'uod  is  now  changed,  we  hope  to  have  the 
pleasure,  through  Rev.  Bachman,  to  become  more 
intimately  acquainted  with  the  l^ew  York  Minis- 
terium." 

Arrangements  were  also  made  to  take  up  col- 
lections the  following  May  in  all  the  congrega- 
tions for  the  support  of  the  seminary  in  Tennessee. 

It  is  sad  to  relate  that  this  institution  was  short- 
lived, because  it  was  remotely  located,  and  there- 
fore did  not  properly  come  under  the  influence  of 
Synod;  also,  because  the  leading  men  of  Synod 
did  not  take  hold  of  it  themselves.  They  were 
very  willing  to   extend   their  counsel,  sympathy 


432  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

and  aid,  when  others  did  the  work  in  establishing 
it;  but  that  is  not  the  proper  way  to  build  up  an 
institution,  which  requires  the  entire  wisdom  and 
energy  of  all  the  members  of  Synod. 

But  the  principal  cause  of  the  failure  of  this  in- 
stitution at  that  time  was  the  division  which  arose 
in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  South  in  1819. 
After  the  year  1820,  nothing  more  of  importance 
is  known  of  this  seminary  in  Tennessee. 

From  the  minutes  of  S^^nod  for  1819  the  infor- 
mation is  received  that  §246.75  was  sent  from 
South  Carolina  in  aid  of  this  institution,  out  of 
which  Rev.  Bachman's  congregation  had  contrib- 
uted $221.75. 

Concerning  Rev.  Shober's  book,  familiarlj^  en- 
titled, "Luther,"  and  published  by  authority  of 
Synod,  the  following  action  was  taken.  In  1816, 
on  motion  of  Rev.  Philip  Henkel,  it  was  resolved 
that  the  secretary,  Rev.  Shober,  compile  all  the 
rules  adopt<3d  by  this  Synod,  and  publish  them  in 
the  English  language,  inasmuch  as  our  Church  is 
ver}'  little  known  among  the  English  inhabitants. 

In  accordance  with  this  resolution,  the  Secre- 
tary prepared  and  laid  before  Synod  in  1817,  "A 
manuscript  compilation  entitled:  Comprehensive 
Account  of  the  Rise  and  Progress  of  the  Refor- 
mation of  the  Christian  Church  by  Dr.  Martin 
Luther,  actually  begun  on  the  31st  day  of  October, 
A.D.  1517;  together  with  views  of  his  character 
and  doctrine,  extracted  from  his  books;  and  how 
the  Church,  established  by  him,  arrived  and  pro- 
gressed in  Korth  America;  as  also  the  Constitu- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  433 

tion  and  Rules  of  that  Church  in  North  Carolina 
and  adjoining  States  as  existing  in  October,  1817." 

"On  motion,  a  committee,  consisting  of  the 
Eev.  E.  J.  Miller,  Philip  Henkel  and  Joseph  E. 
Bell,  was  appointed  to  examine  the  same."  A 
few  days  afterward  the  committee  reported: 
"That  they  had  examined  said  manuscript,  and 
do  highly  approve  of  its  contents,  and  recommend 
it  to  be  published,  believing  that  it  will  have  a 
beneficial  efiect  throughout  our  congregations, 
and  give  succinct  information  to  other  Christians 
what  the  Lutheran  Church  is." 

"The  Synod  unanimously  adopted  said  report, 
and  directed  the  treasurer  to  have  1500  copies 
printed."  The  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  this  book 
were  to  be  applied  to  the  Tennessee  Seminary  and 
other  synodial  objects. 

The  contents  of  this  book  are :  a  history  of  the 
Keformation,  a  history  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
*' transplanted  to  America,"  particularly  in  North 
Carolina  and  other  Southern  States;  the  Augsburg 
Confession;  Constitution  and  Rules  adopted  by 
the  North  Carolina  Synod;  extracts  from  Luther's 
writings;  and  some  concluding  remarks. 

The  character  of  the  book  appears  on  some  of 
its  pages  to  be  soundly  Lutheran;  on  other  pages 
compromising  and  unionistic.  The  tenth  and 
eleventh  articles  of  the  Augsburg  Confession  are 
not  passed  by  without  a  comment,  in  the  shape  of 
a  foot-note,  weakening  their  force,  and  making 
them  agreeable  to  all  denominations.  In  the 
"Conclusion"  the  following  remarks  occur:    "I 

.^7 


434  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

have  attentively  examined  the  doctrine  of  the 
Episcopalian  Church,  read  many  excellent  authors 
of  the  Preshyterians,  know  the  Methodist  doctrine 
from  their  book,  ^Portraiture  of  Methodism,'  and 
am  acquainted  with  the  Baptist  doctrine,  so  far  as 
that  they  admit  and  adore  Jesus  the  Savior. 
Among  all  those  classes,  who  worship  Jesus  as  a 
God,  I  see  nothing  of  importance  to  prevent  a 
cordial  union;  and  how  happy  would  it  be  if  all 
the  Churches  could  unite,  and  send  deputies  to  a 
general  meeting  of  all  denominations,"  &c.,  &c. 

This  full  account  of  the  action  of  Synod  in  ref- 
erence to  this  book,  and  this  full  description  of  it, 
have  been  given  for  very  good  reasons,  which  are 
briefly  as  follows : 

Firsily,  inasmuch  as  the  Synod  authorized  the 
secretary  to  write  this  book,  had  it  examined  by 
a  committee,  had  adopted  it  without  a  dissenting 
voice,  had  it  published  at  the  expense  of  Synod, 
had  it  afterwards  scattered  in  its  congregations, 
and  generally  circulated,  the  conclusion,  there- 
fore, is  natural,  that  the  Synod  was  perfectly  satis- 
fied with  its  contents,  that  the  sentiments  therein 
expressed  were  the  sentiments  of  Synod  at  that 
time,  and  that  all  its  ministers  were  united  in  the 
faith  as  therein  exhibited. 

Secondly^  inasmuch  as  Pevs.  Philip  Henkel  and 
J.  E.  Bell  composed  two- thirds  of  the  committee 
to  examine  this  book,  and  reported  favorably, 
'^Mghli/  apiwoving  of  its  contents,''^  branding  the 
eleventh  article  of  the  Augsburg  Confession  as 
"conciliatory"  to  the  Roman  Catholics,  but  no 


IN  NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  435 

longer  observed;  that  their  faith  and  opmions  iu 
regard  to  those  doctrines  and  usages  were  in  har- 
mony at  that  time  with  those  of  Rev.  Shober,  its 
author. 

Thirdly,  inasmuch  as  Revs.  David  Henkel,  Philip 
Henkel  and  others  of  the  then  future  Tennessee 
Synod  circulated  this  book  by  sale,  up  to  the  time 
of  their  withdrawal  from  the  North  Carolina 
Synod,  it  is  but  reasonable  to  conclude,  that  doc- 
trinal differences  did  not,  at  first,  cause  the  divi- 
sion in  the  Church  in  the  years  1819  and  1820. 

In  short,  the  fact  is  apparent  that  all  the  mem- 
bers of  Synod,  with  many  of  their  forefathers  before 
them,  both  in  America  and  in  the  greater  part  of 
Germany,  had  gradually  departed  from  the  pure 
faith  as  confessed  by  the  Reformers. 


Section  12.   Hie  Convention  which  was  called  for  the 
purpose  of  organizing  a  General  Synod. 

On  the  19th  of  October,  1817,  the  Synod  of 
IsTorth  Carolina  convened  at  Pilgrim's  Church, 
Davidson  County,  N^.  C. 

At  this  synodical  meeting  it  was  resolved  that, 
owing  to  the  prevalence  of  sickness  during  the  ftiU 
season,  the  time  when  the  meetings  of  Synod  had 
been  generally  held,  the  Synod  hereafter  shall  be 
convened  on  Trinity  Sunday  of  each  year.  This 
time  of  meeting  was  ^'firmly  fixed''  (vest  gesetzt). 
It  was  also  resolved  that  the  next  meeting  of  Synod 
shall  take  place  on  Trinity  Sunday  of  1819;  con- 


436  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

sequently  there  was  no  meeting  of  Synod  held  in 
1818,  since  that  year's  Trinity  Sunday  occurred 
only  about  seven  months  after  the  last  meeting  of 
Synod;  the  next  meeting  was  therefore  postponed 
to  Trinity  Sunday  of  1819. 

This  arrangement  became  the  occasion  of  a 
threefold  difficulty,  namely :  nineteen  months  with- 
out a  meeting  of  Synod  was  too  long  a  time  to  in- 
tervene for  the  welfare  of  the  Church ;  many  evils 
might  have  been  prevented  had  a  meeting  of  Synod 
taken  place  in  1818.  Too  many  important  inter- 
ests were  intrusted  to  its  care,  and  the  Synod 
should  have  heeded  the  warning  contained  in 
Matt.  13  :  25.  Then  again,  the  call  from  the  Penn- 
sylvania Synod  to  consult  with  that  body,  during 
its  session  in  Baltimore  on  Trinity  Sunday  of  1819, 
about  the  propriety  of  organizing  a  General  Synod, 
presented  another  difficulty,  conflicting  with  the 
time  of  the  meeting  of  the  ^N'orth  Carolina  Synod, 
and  occasioned  no  little  trouble  to  arrange  this 
matter  properly.  The  third  difficulty  will  become 
apparent  in  the  next  section  of  this  book. 

In  compliance  with  the  call  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Synod,  the  E'orth  Carolina  Synod  was  convened 
six  weeks  before  the  time  appointed,  on  the  second 
Sunday  after  Easter,  as  the  following  statement  in 
the  English  minutes  of  Synod  of  1819  fully  ex- 
plains. 

*'The  cause  of  changing  the  time  of  meeting  of 
the  Synod  from  Trinity  Sunday  to  this  day  was 
explained,  namely  :  that  at  the  last  Synod  of  the 
Lutheran  ministry  in  Pennslvania,  a  general  de- 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  437 

sire  was  expressed,  if  possible,  to  effect  a  more  in- 
timate union  with  all  the  Synods  of  our  Church  in 
the  United  States;  which  was  officially  communi- 
cated by  the  officers  of  their  Ministerium  to  our 
secretary,  and  in  private  letters  from  other  reverend 
sources.  This  information  was  then  communicated 
to  ministers  of  our  Synod,  and  particularly  to  our 
reverend  president,  and  all  such  who,  in  the  vicin- 
ity, could  be  informed  thereof,  united  in  opinion, 
that  towards  a  union  of  our  Church  in  this  exten- 
sive country  all  possible  assistance  ought  to  be  ren- 
dered on  our  part.  But  as  the  Synod  of  Pennsyl- 
vania and  adjacent  States  was  this  year  to  meet  in 
Baltimore  on  Trinity  Sunday,  and  the  officers  of 
their  last  Synod  had  invited  us  to  send  a  deputy 
or  deputies  to  the  same ;  the  consideration  whether 
this  Sjaiod  would  send  deputies  could  not  be  post- 
poned to  the  same  day,  and  for  that  reason  this 
meeting  was  called  at  this  time.  And  after  the 
said  letters  from  the  reverend  secretary,  Endress, 
of  Lancaster,  and  the  reverend  president,  Loch- 
man,  were  read,  this  Synod  unanimously  approved 
of  our  present  meeting. 

"  It  was  further  unanimously  agreed  that  our 
reverend  president,  w^ith  the  consent  of  two  or 
three  ordained  ministers  residing  in  his  vicinity, 
is  authorized  to  call  a  Synod,  and  to  make  other 
orders  and  regulations  which  will  not  admit  of 
delay ;  and  which  should  be  valid  until  the  suc- 
ceeding meeting  of  the  Synod.'* 

This  would  have  all  been  well  enough,  if  the 
matter  which  claimed  their  earlier  attention  had 


438  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

been  urgent;  also  if  the  time  of  the  meeting  of 
Sjmod  had  not  been  "firmly  fixed." 

That  the  question,  concerning  the  establishment 
of  a  General  Sj^nod,  did  not  require  speedy  action 
at  that  time  is  evident  from  the  fact,  that  the  meet- 
ing in  Baltimore  in  1819  was  simpl}^  an  annual 
meeting  of  the  Pennsylvania  Synod;  where  the 
question  was  to  be  discussed  as  to  the  iiroiwiety  of 
organizing  a  General  Synod ;  it  was  certainly  in- 
judicious haste  on  the  part  of  the  I^orth  Carolina 
Synod  to  disarrange  its  own  Church  affairs,  merely 
to  send  a  deputy  to  a  meeting  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Synod ;  at  which  meeting  no  steps  could  possibly 
be  taken,  except  to  discuss  the  question  and  call 
for  a  convention  of  delegates  from  all  the  Synods. 
The  ]^orth  Carolina  Synod  should  have  had  more 
respect  for  its  own  legislation  at  its  last  meeting, 
and  let  "firmly  fixed"  remain  so,  until  reconsid- 
ered and  changed  at  a  regular  meeting  of  Synod. 

"After  deliberating  on  the  manner  how  a  de- 
sirable union  of  the  whole  Church  might  best  be 
eftected,  it  appeared  unnecessary  to  send  more 
than  one  deputy  at  the  beginning  of  an  attempt 
towards  a  union ;  because  if  one  deputy  of  each 
now  existing  Sj^nod  was  elected,  they  could  form 
a  constitution  of  our  general  Church,  which  would 
then  be  laid  before  the  difterent  Synods  for  accep- 
tance. 

"  According  to  this  view,  our  secretary,  Gottlieb 
Shober,  was  elected  to  attend  the  Synod  at  Balti- 
more, and,  in  the  name  of  this  Synod,  endeavor  to 
efi:ect  such  a  desirable  union. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  439 

''^Resolved,  that  if  lie  accedes  to  a  constitution  for 
the  purpose  of  uniting  our  whole  Church,  and  that 
constitution  be  in  accordance  with  his  instructions 
received  from  this  Synod,  it  be  adopted  by  us; 
but  if  such  constitution  be  not  in  accordance  with 
his  instructions,  the  same  must  first  be  communi- 
cated to  our  next  Synod  ;  and  only  then,  if  adopted, 
can  it  be  binding  upon  us. 

"  A  committee  to  form  instructions  for  our 
deputy  was  appointed,  namely:  the  Revs.  Robert 
Johnson  Miller,  Jacob  Scherer,  and  Mr.  Jonas 
Abernathy."  The  committee  afterwards  reported, 
and  the  "  instructions  were  considered,  paragraph 
after  paragraph,  amended,  and  then  unanimously 
approved."  These  instructions  were  not  published 
in  the  minutes.  Rev.  Sliober  attended  the  meeting 
of  the  Pennsylvania  Synod  in  Baltimore,  and 
labored  with  a  committee  of  said  Synod  in  pre- 
paring a  plan  for  the  organization  of  a  General 
Synod;  this  plan  was  published  for  general  distri- 
bution among  all  the  ministers  and  delegates  of 
the  several  Lutheran  Synods  in  the  United  States, 
a  copy  of  which  is  found  reprinted  in  the  minutes 
of  the  Tennessee  Synod  of  1820,  from  which  it  is 
seen  that  Rev.  Shober  was  the  only  delegate  that 
appeared  upon  the  floor  of  the  Pennsylvania  Synod 
from  other  Lutheran  Synods. 

The  next  step,  that  was  taken  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  General  Synod,  was  the  convention  of 
delegates  from  the  several  Synods  in  October, 
1820,  at  Ilagerstown,  Maryland,  at  which  conven- 
tion a  constitution  was  adopted  for  the  government 


440  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

of  the  future  General  Synod.  At  this  convention 
four  Synods  were  represented,  namely:  The  Penn- 
sylvania, the  Kortli  Carolina,  the  New  York  and 
the  Maryland- Virginia  Synod.  The  Ohio  Synod 
at  first  adopted  the  proposed  "Plan"  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Synod,  but  afterwards  reconsidered  its 
action,  and  Avithdrew  from  the  enterprise;  the 
Tennessee  Synod  never  became  connected  with 
the  General  Synod.  The  North  Carolina  Synod 
elected  Revs.  R.  J.  Miller,  Peter  Schmucker  and 
Mr.  John  B.  Plarry  as  deputies  to  the  convention 
at  Hagerstown,  Maryland. 

The  first  session  of  the  General  Synod  w^as  held 
in  October,  1821,  in  Fredericktown,  Maryland. 
Delegates  present  from  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
were  Revs.  G.  Shober  and  D.  Scherer. 


Section  13.  The  First  Rii'pture  in  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  America.,  and  the  subsequent  forma- 
tion of  the  lennessee  Synod.,  A.D.  1819  and 
1820. 

It  may  be  seen  from  the  preceding  sections,  that 
dissensions  were  beginning  to  arise  in  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  the  Carolinas.  This  state  of  things 
might  have  been  expected,  when  ministers  from 
other  denominations,  still  holding  fast  to  their  un- 
Lutheran  principles,  were  admitted  as  members  of 
the  Synod;  and  when  no  theological  seminary  was 
established,  in  which  the  future  ministers  might 
be  trained  alike  in  the  doctrines  and  usages  of  the 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  441 

Lutheran  Church.  Doctrinal  differences  were  at 
first  not  very  apparent,  except  on  the  ordination 
question ;  however,  it  was  perceptible,  as  early  as 
1816,  tliat  everything  was  tending  towards  a  dis- 
ruption, and  that  only  some  occasion  or  circum- 
stance was  wanting  to  produce  it. 

This  event  was  not  long  delayed,  for  in  the  year 
1819  the  Synod  of  ITorth  Carolina  held  its  sessions 
six  weeks  earlier  than  the  appointed  time,  which, 
with  the  transactions  of  that  meeting  of  Synod, 
furnished  the  occasion  to  rend  the  Church  asunder. 

The  persons  who  became  the  leaders  in  this 
division  were  Eev.  Gottlieb  Shober,  on  the  part 
of  the  E'orth  Carolina  Synod,  and  Rev.  David 
Henkel,  on  the  part  of  the  withdrawing  party, 
that  afterwards  formed  the  Tennessee  Synod. 

Eev.  Shober  was  a  man  of  decided  opinions, 
unyielding  in  everything  which  he  considered 
right,  as  may  be  seen  from  a  sketch  of  his  life  in 
the  Evangelical  Review,  vol.  viii,  pp.  412-414; 
*'  with  a  mind  that  knew  no  dissimulation,  a  lofty 
independence,  an  ardent  temper,  and  a  character 
decidedly  affirmative,  he  frequently  experienced 
difficulties,  and  encountered  points  other  than 
pleasant,  in  his  pilgrimage  through  life,  and  which 
a  disposition  more  pliant  could  have  averted." 
''  The  lineaments  of  his  countenance  gave  indica- 
tions of  a  strong  and  active  mind."  "He  was  one 
of  the  most  active  defenders  of  (the)  General 
Synod,  as  he  had  also  been  prominent  among  its 
early  founders."  But  Rev.  Shober  was  no  Lu- 
theran, he  was  a  member  of  the  Moravian  Church, 


442  '      THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

and  never  disconnected  himself  from  communion 
with  the  same;  he  lived  and  died  as  a  member  of 
that  Church.  This  information  the  writer  received 
from  his  own  daughter,  the  widow  of  Bishop  Herr- 
man.  He  merely  served  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
the  capacity  of  one  of  its  ministers,  being  the  pas- 
tor of  several  neglected  Lutheran  congregations 
in  the  vicinity  of  his  place  of  residence,  Salem, 
E".  C.  It  may  be  readily  perceived  that  no  com- 
promise could  be  expected  on  his  part,  in  the 
difficulties  which  distracted  the  Lutheran  Church 
at  that  time. 

Firm  as  was  the  Rev.  G.  Shober,  he  found  his 
equal,  in  that  respect,  in  Rev.  David  Henkel,  who, 
though  a  young  man  then,  was  equally  as  decided 
and  unyielding  in  his  opinions.  He  was  a  hard 
student  and  well  educated,  not  only  in  the  German 
and  English  languages,  but  also  in  Latin,  Greek, 
Hebrew  and  Theology,  all  of  which  he  had  prin- 
cipally acquired  by  private  study  and  close  appli- 
cation. He  was  the  best  informed  candidate  for 
the  ministry  the  ^N'orth  Carolina  Synod  had  at  that 
time,  and  wielded  even  then  a  considerable  influ- 
ence in  the  Church.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that 
he  would  readily  yield  his  opinions  to  others,  or 
permit  himself  to  be  led  about  at  the  will  of  even 
those  who  were  older  than  himself,  when  he  be- 
lieved his  cause  to  be  just.  In  him  the  Tennessee 
Synod  had  a  champion  who  could  not  be  easily 
overcome.  He  had  a  mind  that  was  clear,  active 
and  penetrating;  he  was  quick  in  discerning  an 
advantage,   and  not   slow   in  making  use   of  it. 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  443 

These  characteristics  are  gathered  principally  from 
his  own  writings. 

The  difficulty  was  at  first  a  personal  one,  and, 
as  admitted  by  the  North  Carolina  Synod  (English 
minutes  of  1820,  p.  6),  ^'  errors  had  been  committed 
on  both  sides;"  but  it  soon  took  a  wider  range;  a 
strong  opposition  was  created  to  the  formation  of 
the  General  Synod,  and,  in  the  heat  of  controversy, 
doctrinal  differences  between  the  two  opposing 
parties  became  manifest,  which  widened  the  breach 
already  existing,  and  all  attempts  at  reconciliation 
during  the  meeting  of  the  ITorth  Carolina  Synod, 
which  convened  in  Lincolnton,  ]^.  C,  May  28th, 
1820,  proved  unavailing. 

On  the  17th  of  July  of  the  same  year,  Eevs. 
Jacob  Zink,  Paul  Henkel,  Adam  Miller,  Philip 
Henkel  and  George  Easterly,  with  delegates  from 
the  Tennessee  congregations,  met  in  Solomon's 
Church,  Cove  Creek,  Green  County,  Tennessee, 
and  organized  the  Tennessee  Synod.  Kev.  David 
Henkel  could  not  attend  this  meeting,  but  ac- 
knowledo^ed  himself  a  member  of  the  new  ors-ani- 
zation.  The  separation  between  the  two  contend- 
ing parties  was  now  fully  effected,  and  both  Synods 
labored  industriously  in  their  own  selected  spheres 
of  usefulness;  not,  however,  without  considerable 
opposition  to  each  other,  and  the  publication  of 
controversy. 

Although  divisions  in  the  Church  are  always  to 
be  dreaded,  and,  except  in  cases  of  doctrinal  dif- 
ferences, always  to  be  avoided,  nevertheless,  when 
they  do  occur,  they  sometimes  effect  good  in  vital- 


444  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

izing  dormaut  energies,  and  in  re-establishing  the 
pure  faith  of  the  Gospel.  Such  was  the  case  in 
this  division ;  it  increased  the  number  of  minis- 
ters, it  provided  for  the  wants  of  so  manj^  neg- 
lected congregations,  it  made  ministers  and  lay- 
men all  the  more  energetic,  zealous  and  faithful 
in  the  discharge  of  their  duties,  and  it  resulted 
in  an  enlarged  increase  in  the  strength  of  the 
Church. 

But  God  made  use  of  this  division  in  the  Church 
in  accomplishing  a  special  purpose  for  the  welfare 
of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America: 

Firstly,  In  attracting  attention  once  more  to  the 
pure  doctrines  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  as  con- 
fessed by  the  early  Reformers,  and  in  awakening 
inquiry  into  those  truths,  which  the  symbols  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  exhibited.  So  gradual  and  yet 
so  sure  were  the  departures  from  the  confessed 
faitli  of  the  Church,  as  well  as  the  assimilation  to 
the  teachings  and  practices  of  other  denomina- 
tions, that  for  a  long  time  it  awakened  no  alarm, 
and  but  a  learned  few  had  any  idea  of  what  the 
faith  of  the  Lutheran  Church  was;  admirers  of 
Luther  there  were  in  abundance,  even  among 
other  denominations,  but  very  few  knew  anything 
of  the  secret  which  made  Luther  the  conscientious, 
fearless  and  zealous  man  that  he  was.  Multitudes 
admired  Luther's  energy  and  labors,  but  they 
knew  little  of  the  faith  which  actuated  his  labors, 
and  of  the  doctrines  upon  which  that  faith  was 
based.  Had  they  known  it  and  experienced  it 
themselves,  more  would  have  been  accomplished 


m  NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  445 

at  that  time  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  America, 
and  divisions  would  not  have  occurred;  then  also 
there  would  have  been  less  manifest  desire  to  unite 
all  denominations  into  one  Church,  but  a  stronger 
desire  to  advance  the  interests  of  that  Church,  to 
which  God  has  given  a  peculiar  field  of  labor. 

Secondly,  By  means  of  this  division  the  symbols 
of  the  Lutheran  Church  were  translated  into  the 
English  language.  This  was  a  want  that  had  long 
been  felt,  but  before  that  time  no  one  possessed 
the  patience  and  energy  to  apply  himself  to  the 
task.  There  was  an  abundance  of  anxious  desire 
manifested  by  some  to  make  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  America  an  English,  as  well  as  a  German 
Church,  but  no  anxiety  manifested  itself  to  an- 
glicize the  faith  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  that  is, 
to  translate  its  confessions  and  theology  into  the 
English  language.  All  honor  then  to  the  Ten- 
nessee Synod  for  undertaking  this  work,  which 
has  accomplished  more  in  preserving  the  faith  of 
our  fathers  in  this  countrj^  than  any  similar  under- 
taking in  the  English  language. 

Thirdly,  The  Lutheran  Church  in  America  has 
had  its  publication  boards  and  societies  in  abun- 
dance, which  have  doubtless  accomplished  a  good 
work;  but  the  oldest  establishment  of  the  kind  is 
the  one  in  ^ew  Market,  Virginia,  which  dates  its 
existence  as  far  back,  at  least,  as  1810,  for  the 
minutes  of  the  ]N"orth  Carolina  Synod  were  printed 
there  at  that  time.  It  was  established  b}^  the 
Henkel  family,  and  has  continued  under  their 
management  to  this  day;  at  the  time  of  the  divi- 


446  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

sion  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  jN"orth  Carolina, 
it  came  at  once  into  the  service  of  the  Tennessee 
Synod,  and  has  issued  more  truly  Lutheran  theo- 
logical works  in  an  English  dress  than  any  similar 
institution  in  the  world.  "We  may  well  say,  "  What 
hath  God  wrought?"  How  imperceptible  have 
been  his  purposes !  How  brightly  they  shine  forth 
now! 


CHAPTER  Y. 


FROM  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  TENNESSEE  SYNOD 
TO  THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL 
SExMINARY  AT  LEXINGTON,  SOUTH  CAROLINA,  A.D. 

1833. 

Section  1,  A  GUmjJse  into  the  History  of  some  of  the 
older  Congregations, 

St.  John's  Lntherayi  Church,  Charleston,  S.  C. — 
JSTothing  contributes  more  to  the  prosperity  of  a 
congregation  than  the  voice  and  presence  of  a  liv- 
ing and  faithful  ministry ;  the  want  of  an  efficient 
and  useful  pastor  for  the  short  time  of  only  one 
year  is  of  incalculable  injury  to  any  church,  not 
that  the  building  up  of  a  congregation  is  the  work 
of  man,  but  that  Christ  has  so  ordained,  that  pas- 
tors should  watch  over  and  '•'  feed  the  flock  of  God." 
Disarrange  the  relationship  between  pastor  and 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  447 

people,  and  no  promise  is  given  that  a  congrega- 
tion will  be  blessed.  The  voice  of  a  living  minis- 
try must  be  heard;  the  faith  of  a  people  is  built 
up  by  the  preached  word  and  the  administered 
sacraments. 

This  was  also  exemplified  in  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  Charleston.  Before  the  arrival  of  their 
pastor,  the  Rev.  John  Bachman,  in  1815,  the  con- 
gregation had  greatly  declined,  but  from  that  time 
it  commenced  to  improve,  and  soon  enjoyed  a  high 
state  of  prosperity.  Their  new  pastor  possessed 
the  confidence  of  his  people  and  of  the  community 
at  large,  and  was  peculiarly  fitted  for  the  work 
intrusted  into  his  hands. 

The  "  small  wooden  church  erected  in  colonial 
times,"  soon  became  filled  with  devout  worshipers, 
and  became  too  small  to  accommodate  the  grow- 
ing congregation.  "The  commanding  attain- 
ments, and  the  attractive  geniality  and  social 
habits  of  the  new  pastor,  won  so  rapidly  the  ad- 
miration and  esteem  of  his  good  people  and  the 
public,  that  the  erection  and  dedication  of  the 
present  handsome  temple  became  almost  at  once 
a  matter  of  necessity. 

"  A  committee  of  twenty-one  was  appointed  to  in- 
quire into  the  expediency  of  building  a  new  clmrch, 
who  reported  favorably,  and  in  July,  1815,  Mr.  F. 
Wesner's  contract  for  the  wood  work  of  the  edi- 
fice, and  Mr.  J.  F.  H.  Horlbeck's  for  the  brick 
work,  were  accepted.  The  new  building  was 
dedicated  on  Sunday,  January  8th,  1818,  by  the 
Rev.  John  Bachman." 


448  THE   LUTHEEAN   CHURCH 

God  blessed  the  labors  of  his  servant,  and  made 
hira  a  shining  light  in  the  Church,  laboring  in 
harmony  with  his  brethren,  and  accomplishing 
much  good.  A  few  ^^ears  after  his  arrival  in 
Charleston,  Rev.  Bachman  connected  himself  by 
marriage  with  the  family  of  a  former  and  greatly 
beloved  pastor  of  this  congregation,  the  Rev.  J. 
E".  Martin,  whose  son's  daughter  became  the  new 
pastor's  partner  in  joy  and  sorrow,  and  thus  were 
the  past  and  present  happily  linked  together,  and 
all  circumstances,  together  with  the  pastor's  unre- 
mitting and  appreciated  labors,  contributed  to  the 
growth  and  prosperity  of  the  congregation. 

St.  Johfs  Church,  Salisbury/,  N.  C. — In  the  year 
1818,  whilst  the  Episcopalians  were  worshiping  in 
this  church,  they  made  the  proposition  to  erect  a 
new  frame  church,  the  old  log  building  being 
greatly  out  of  repair.  The  members  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  agreed  to  this  proposal,  and  also 
aided  in  the  building  of  the  new  house  of  worship. 

However,  this  arrangement  gave  rise  to  serious 
difficulties;  as  soon  as  the  new  church  was  com- 
pleted, the  question  of  its  dedication  arose,  and  the 
Lutherans  were  fearful  that,  if  the  church  would 
be  consecrated  by  a  bishop  of  the  Episcopal 
Church,  they  would  forfeit  their  right  and  title  in 
the  property.  And  thus  it  was,  whilst  the  Lu- 
therans claimed  the  land  on  which  the  church 
stood,  the  Episcopalians  claimed  the  building. 
Whose  then  w^as  the  church  ?  Who  had  the  right 
to  worship  there  ?  These  questions  seriously  agi- 
tated the  minds  and  feelings  of  both  parties;  but 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  449 

before  any  very  decisive  hostile  steps  were  taken, 
and  in  order  to  effect  a  compromise,  the  Lutherans 
agreed  to  purcliase  tlie  interest  in  the  buikling  to 
which  the  Episcopalians  laid  claim,  gave  their 
bond  in  the' meantime  for  the  amount  agreed 
upon,  and  afterwards  raised  the  funds  by  sub- 
scription to  liquidate  the  debt. 

In  August,  1822,  the  President  of  the  I^orth 
Carolina  Synod,  Eev.  G.  Shober,  sent  a  written 
communication  to  the  members  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  Salisbury,  which  was  publicly  read  to 
them.  It  is  herewith  inserted  in  order  to  show 
the  sad  state  of  this  congregation  at  that  time. 

*' Respected  Friends,  Members  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  by  Birthright  or  otherwise: 

"Being  appointed  by  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
our  last  Synod,  President  of  the  same  for  one  year, 
I  regard  it  as  being  part  of  my  duty  during  the 
recess  of  the  Synod,  to  have  a  constant  eye  towards 
the  preservation  of  the  same  in  all  its  rights,  priv^- 
ileges  and  possessions,  and  to  encourage  the  re- 
vival of  former  congregations. 

"I  am  convinced,  by  the  reading  of  the  deed  of 
conveyance  from  Mr.  Beard,  deceased,  to  our 
Church,  for  a  lot  of  ground,  near  or  in  Salisbury, 
where  the  church  now  stands,  that  we  have  an 
undoubted  right  for  the  same ;  that  there  was,  for 
many  years,  regular  service  performed  by  the  Rev. 
Senior  Stork,  is  well  known,  and  it  only  abated 


450  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

on  account  of  his  disability  to  attend.  It  is  my 
opinion  that  we,  as  a  Church,  are  acting  disrespect- 
fully to  the  donor  of  the  lot  and  to  his  heirs,  who, 
by  that  deed,  are  expressly  charged  to  protect  us 
in  the  right  and  privileges  of  the  same,  and  that  it 
is  a  dereliction  of  duty  in  the  members  of  our 
Church  not  to  preserve  the  lot  and  burying-ground, 
particularly  for  the  interment  of  the  heirs  of  the 
donor,  and  members  of  our  Church  and  their  de- 
scendants, and  also  from  being  a  general  burying- 
ground. 

"I  therefore  beg  leave  to  advise  you  7iow  to 
elect  elders  and  trustees,  whose  duty  it  is,  accord- 
ing to  law,  to  preserve  the  propert}^  of  the  church 
as  trustees  (particularly  if  the  heirs  of  the  donor 
decline  acting  as  such),  and  also  to  give  to  them 
the  necessary  authority  to  regulate  all  external 
things  according  to  the  constitution  and  rules  of 
our  Church. 

^'I  beg  leave  further  to  propose  that  if  you  agree 
to  revive  a  congregation  according  to  our  rules, 
by  appointing  elders  and  trustees,  to  appoint  a 
time  when  the  church  can  be  dedicated  by  our 
ministry  and  according  to  our  form  of  worship, 
when  two  or  three  ministers  of  our  Church  will 
attend  for  that  purpose;  other  preachers  may  also 
be  invited  to  attend  and  to  preach  the  v^ord,  all 
for  the  purpose  of  causing  a  revival  of  true  religion 
for  our  department  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  by 
whose  Spirit  alone  it  can  through  the  word  be 
effected.  But  it  is  to  be  observed  that  only  such 
Lutheran    ministers    as    are   in    union   with   our 


IN  NOHTH   AND  SOUTH   CAROLINA.  451 

Synod,  and  such  who  bring  and  show  credentials 
of  being  duly  appointed  in  other  States,  can  be 
admitted.  The  standing  of  each  minister  must 
be  inquired  into  by  the  elders,  who  have  the  power 
to  admit  or  refuse. 

*^In  expectation  that  the  Lord  will  bless  your 
exertions  for  the  revival  of  the  congregation  of 
the  Lutheran  Church, 

"I  remain,  your  humble  servant, 

"G.  Shober." 

This  communication,  sent  by  Rev.  Shober  to 
the  remaining  Lutherans  of  Salisbury,  had  the 
desired  eftect  of  once  more  rousing  and  encourag- 
ing them  to  action.  On  the  20th  of  September, 
1822,  the  following  articles,  drawn  up  by  Hon. 
Charles  Fisher,  member  of  Congress,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  reorganizing  the  old  Lutheran  congrega- 
tion, were  sent  around  to  the  citizens  of  Salisbury 
for  their  signature: 

"  Salisbury  Lutheran  Church. 

"  We,  the  subscribers,  believing  that  the  cause 
of  religion  will  be  promoted  by  re-establishing  the 
Lutheran  congregation  which  formerly  existed  in 
the  town  of  Salisbury,  and  believing,  moreover, 
that  it  is  a  sacred  duty  we  owe  to  the  memories  of 
our  fathers  and  predecessors  no  longer  to  suffer 
the  church  and  the  graveyard  where  their  bodies 
are  at  rest  to  lie  in  neglect  and  disregard,  do 
hereby  agree  to  unite  our  names  and  efforts  to 


452  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  purpose  of  reviving  the  congregation,  keeping 
the  grave^'ard  in  decent  order,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses properly  connected  with  a  work  of  the  kind. 
We  further  agree  to  meet  at  the  church  on  such 
day  as  may  be  fixed  upon  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
sulting together  upon  such  subjects  as  may  be  con- 
nected with  the  establishment  and  prosperity  of 
the  congregation. 

"Dated  and  signed  by 

John  Beard,  Sr.,  John"  H.  Swink, 

Charles  Fisher,  Bernhardt  Kreiter, 

Daniel  Cress,  Lewis  Utzmann, 

Peter  Crider,  H.  Allemong, 

John  Trexler,  M.  Bruner, 

John  Beard,  Jr.,  John  Allbright, 

Peter  H.  Swink,  Henry  Swinkavag." 
Moses  Brown, 

Through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  John  Beard,  Sr., 
the  devoted  friend  and  firm  member  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  at  that  time,  funds  were  collected 
for  the  purpose  of  inclosing  the  graveyard,  which 
had  long  been  neglected. 

For  some  time  no  regular  pastor  could  be  ob- 
tained, and  the  energies  of  the  members  again  lay 
dormant  until  the  year  1825,  when  brighter  pros- 
pects dawned  upon  this  neglected  congregation, 
and  once  more  revived  the  hopes  of  its  members. 
A  meeting  of  a  respectable  number  of  the  citizens 
of  Salisbury  and  its  vicinity  was  held  in  the  church 
on  the  3d  of  September,  1825,  for  the  purpose  of 
adopting  measures  to  reorganize  a  Lutheran  con- 
gregation ;  John  Beard,  Sr.,  was  called  to  the  chair, 
and  Charles  Fisher  appointed  Secretary. 


IN   NOETH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  453 

"  After  due  deliberation  as  to  the  best  method 
of  accomplishing  the  object  of  the  meeting,  it  was 
unanimously  resolved,  that  a  committee  of  two  per- 
sons be  appointed  to  draft  an  instrument  of  writ- 
ing, and  offer  the  same  for  the  signature  of  such 
persons  in  the  town  of  Salisbury  and  its  vicinity 
as  are  disposed  to  aid  in  the  formation  of  a  Lu- 
theran congregation  in  this  place,  either  by  becom- 
ing members  of  said  congregation,  or  supporters 
thereof.  Messrs.  John  Beard  and  James  Brown 
were  accordingly^  appointed  to  compose  said  com- 
mittee. 

"  It  was  further  resolved,  that  a  committee,  con- 
sisting of  George  Yogler  and  Robert  Mull,  be  and 
are  hereby  appointed  to  ofler  a  subscription  list  to 
the  good  people  of  Salisbury  and  vicinity  for  the 
support  of  a  Lutheran  clergyman  for  preaching 
part  of  his  time  for  one  year  in  the  town  of  Salis- 
bur}^  The  meeting  then  adjourned  to  meet  again 
the  following  Monday. 

"Charles  Fisher, 

"Secretary. 

"At  a  subsequent  meeting  George  Yogler  was 
appointed  treasurer,  and  Henry  C.  Kern  recording 
secretary  of  this  society.  It  was  also  resolved  that 
a  Bible  be  purchased  and  deposited  in  the  church, 
to  be  the  property  of  the  same  forever.  The 
church  council  elected  at  this  meeting  were  : 
Elders:  Messrs.  John  Beard,  Sr.,  George  Vogler, 
Moses  Brown.  Deacons  :  Messrs.  I^athan  Brown, 
George  Fraley,  and  Henry  C.  Kern." 


454  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

In  the  year  1826,  the  Rev.  John  Reck,  having 
received  and  accepted  the  call  tendered  him,  be- 
came the  pastor  of  this  church ;  the  number  of 
communicants  at  that  time  was  but  fourteen, 
which,  however,  steadily  increased  under  the  faith- 
ful ministrations  of  their  pastor,  who  was  greatly 
beloved  by  the  people,  and  through  his  zeal  and 
energy  accomplished  much  for  his  Master's  king- 
dom. 

The  condition  of  this  church  under  Rev.  Reek's 
ministry  in  1827  is  stated  in  the  minutes  of  the 
E'orth  Carolina  Synod,  as  follows:  "In  Salisbury, 
where  eighteen  months  ago  there  was  no  regularly 
organized  Lutheran  congregation,  there  are  now 
thirty  members  in  full  communion;  and  by  the 
active  measures  of  several  respectable  persons,  a 
large  and  commodious  church  has  been  purchased, 
and  a  subscription  raised  to  pay  for  it.  In  this 
place  a  lecture  meeting  is  held  once  a  week,  which 
is  generally  well  attended,  and  not  unfrequently 
the  utmost  solemnity  pervades  the  audience.  The 
people  are  liberal  and  attentive  to  the  cause  of  be- 
nevolence, and  assist  in  supporting  Bible,  mission- 
ary, and  other  religious  societies." 

Thus  might  this  church  have  been  greatly  in- 
creased in  strength,  energy,  and  usefulness,  but 
Rev.  J.  Reck,  after  having  been  its  pastor  for  five 
years,  felt  it  his  duty  to  resign  and  return  to  Mary- 
land, and  after  this  time  the  congregation  had 
such  a  continued  and  rapid  succession  of  minis- 
ters, besides  having  been  at  times  also  unsupplied 
with  the  stated  means  of  grace,  as  to  be  unable 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  455 

to  command  the  influence  which  the  reo-uh^r 
ministrations  of  a  permanent  pastor  might  have 
given  it. 

Si.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus  Count)/,  JV.  C. — In  the 
last  account  of  this  church,  it  was  seen  tliat  the 
Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Stork  was  the  pastor  of  this  congre- 
gation, but  his  health  having  become  too  feeble  to 
attend  to  the  wants  of  so  many  churches,  he  intro- 
duced the  Rev.  Daniel  Scherer  as  his  successor. 
During  a  communion  season  in  the  spring  of  1821, 
when  a  large  class  of  catechumens,  numbering 
seventy-seven  persons,  were  confirmed,  their  aged 
pastor  being  present,  but  too  feeble  to  stand  dur- 
ing the  ceremony,  called  all  his  catechumens  to 
him,  and  gave  them  and  the  other  members  and 
friends  of  the  church  his  last  farewelL  So  aflTect- 
ing  was  the  scene,  that  the  whole  of  that  vast  as- 
sembly were  moved  to  tears,  and  long  has  the 
serious  lesson  been  remembered,  which  their  aged 
pastor  addressed  to  them  at  that  time,  whilst  he 
held  out  his  hand  to  each,  and  gave  them  his  part- 
ing blessing. 

Kev.  Daniel  Scherer  proved  himself  to  have  been 
likewise  a  faithful  pastor.  He  was  much  beloved 
by  his  people,  and  remained  nearly  ten  years  among 
them;  however,  during  his  ministry  and  for  some 
time  previous,  a  large  number  of  persons  from  St. 
John's  and  other  Lutheran  churches  in  ^orth 
Carolina  settled  themselves  in  Illinois  Territory, 
and  their  pastor's  heart  followed  them  to  the  wild 
prairies  of  their  newly-adopted  country,  and  he 
soon  cast  his  lot  among  them,  and  labored  there 
for  their  spiritual  good. 


456  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Organ  Church,  Roioan  County,  North  Carolina. — 
As  Eev.  Stork  was  the  pastor  of  this  congrega- 
tion as  well  as  that  of  St.  John's,  it  had  aiuch  the 
same  history  at  this  time.  Eev.  Daniel  Scherer 
also  became  his  successor  here  some  two  years 
afterwards.  Thirty-five  years  did  Eev.  Stork 
labor  in  this  church,  and  with  great  success.  It 
was  the  first  congregation  he  served,  and  the  last 
he  resigned.  He  lived  in  favor  with  God  and 
man;  his  example  and  usefulness  are  still  felt, 
and  his  memory  is  cherished  witli  affection  by  all 
who  knew  him.  During  this  period  he  baptized 
1500  children,  and  confirmed  1300  young  people 
in  Organ  Church  alone,  and  probably  as  many 
more  in  the  other  churches  under  his  charge. 

At  length  the  feeble  state  of  his  health  com- 
pelled him  to  resign  this  church  also  in  1823. 
His  successor  labored  here  likewise  with  much  suc- 
cess, and  had  at  one  time  probably  the  largest 
class  of  catechumens,  numbering  83  persons,  that 
were  confirmed  in  this  church,  during  a  session  of 
the  North  Carolina  Synod  at  this  place,  in  which 
ceremony  their  aged  pastor  took  the  deepest  in- 
terest. 

Eev.  Scherer  labored  but  six  years  in  this  con- 
gregation. As  he  had  the  oversight  of  so  many 
churches,  he  thought  it  advisable  to  resign  some 
portion  of  his  charge  into  the  hands  of  another 
minister,  in  order  to  do  justice  to  the  cause  of 
Christ,  and  Eev.  Jacob  Kaempfer  became  his  suc- 
cessor in  1829. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  457 


Section  2,  Fraternal  Union  of  the  North  Carolina 
Synod  with  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Convention 
of  North  Carolina. 

The  first  step  taken  in  this  direction  was  Rev. 
Robert  J.  Miller's  attendance  upon  the  Episcopal 
Convention  held  in  Raleigh,  April  28th,  1821. 
His  object  v^as  to  connect  himself  fully  with  the 
Episcopal  Church,  to  which  he  really  belonged, 
having  been  ordained  by  the  Lutheran  ministers 
of  N"orth  Carolina  in  1794  as  an  Episcopal  min- 
ister, and  was  the  pastor  of  an  Episcopal  congre- 
gation. White  Haven  Church,  in  Lincoln  County, 
but  because  there  was  no  Episcopal  diocese  at  that 
time  in  the  State,  he  was  admitted  as  a  member 
of  the  Lutheran  i^orth  Carolina  Synod  at  its  or- 
ganization in  1803. 

From  the  journal  of  the  Episcopal  North  Caro- 
lina Convention  of  1818,  the  following  item  of  in- 
telligence is  taken:  "Previously  to  N'ovember, 
1816,  there  was  no  Episcopal  clergyman  in  this 
State,  and  but  one  congregation  in  which  the 
worship  of  our  Church  was  performed."  That 
having  been  the  condition  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
at  that  period,  Rev.  Miller  felt  it  his  duty  to  form 
a  temporary  connection  with  the  Lutheran  Church, 
and  continued  to  labor  for  her  welfare  twenty- 
seven  years,  when  in  1821  he  severed  that  con- 
nection, and  was  ordained  in  Raleigh  to  deacon's 
and  priest's  orders  in  the  Episcopal  ministry  in 
one  day.     Whilst  in  attendance  at  said  Conven- 

39 


458  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

tion,  Kev.  Miller  proposed  to  efiect,  "as  far  as 
practicable,  intercourse  and  union  between  the 
Episcopalians  and  some  of  the  Lutheran  congre- 
gations." His  proposition  was  referred  to  the 
Coniniittee  on  the  State  of  the  Church,  who  after- 
wards reported  as  follows: 

^'A  very  interesting  conimunication  has  this 
session  been  laid  before  the  comtnittee,  on  the 
subject  of  a  union  between  that  truly  respectable 
denomination,  the  Lutherans,  and  our  Church. 
To  carry  this  measure  into  effect,  the  committee 
propose  the  following  resolution: 

"  Resolved,  That  a  committee,  consisting  of  three 
persons,  two  clerical  and  one  lay  member,  be  ap- 
pointed to  meet  the  Synod  of  the  Lutheran  Church, 
to  consider  and  agree  upon  such  terms  of  union 
as  may  tend  to  the  mutual  advantage  and  welfare 
of  both  Churches,  not  inconsistent  with  the  con- 
stitution and  canons  of  this  Church,  or  the  Protes- 
tant Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States. 

"  The  Convention  then  proceeded  to  take  into 
consideration  the  resolution  proposed  by  the  com- 
mittee, when  it  was  adopted,  and  the  Eev.  Adam 
Empie,  Eev.  G.  T.  Bedell,  and  Duncan  Cameron, 
Esq.,  were  appointed  a  committee  to  attend  the 
Lutheran  Synod,  and  to  carry  the  resolution  into 
effect." 

On  the  17th  of  June,  1821,  the  Lutheran  ^Torth 
Carolina  Synod  met  in  Lau's  Church,  Guilford 
County,  and  from  its  minutes  the  following  is 
quoted: 

"  The  President  now  reported  that  the  Kev.  R. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  459 

J.  Miller,  who  had  labored  for  many  years  as  one 
of  our  ministers,  had  been  ordained  by  the  Bishop 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  as  a  priest  at  a  conven- 
tion of  that  Church.  That  he  had  always  regarded 
himself  as  belonging  to  that  Church,  but  because 
the  Episcopal  Church  had  no  existence  at  that 
time  in  this  State,  he  had  himself  ordained  by 
our  ministry,  with  the  understanding  that  he  still 
belonged  to  the  Episcopal  Church.  But  as  the 
said  Church  had  now  reorganized  itself  (in  this 
State),  he  had  united  himself  with  it,  and  thus 
disconnected  himself  from  our  Synod,  as  was 
allowed  him  at  his  ordination  by  our  ministers. 
Rev.  Miller  then  made  a  short  address  before 
Synod  and  the  congregation  then  assembled,  in 
which  he  distinctly  explained  his  position,  so  that 
no  one  should  be  able  to  say  that  he  had  aposta- 
tized from  our  Synod,  since  he  had  been  ordained 
by  our  Ministerium  as  a  minister  of  the  Episcopal 
Church.  He  then  promised  that  he  would  still 
aid  and  stand  by  us  as  much  and  as  far  as  lay  in 
his  power. 

"  With  this  explanation  the  whole  matter  was 
well  understood  by  the  entire  assembly,  and  was 
deemed  perfectly  satisfactory.  Whereupon  it  was 
resolved  that  the  president  tend  to  Rev.  Miller 
our  sincere  thanks,  in  the  name  of  the  Synod,  for 
the  faithful  services  he  had  hitherto  rendered  our 
Church.  This  was  immediately  done  in  a  feeling 
manner. 

"After  this  a  letter  was  read  from  Rev.  Bishop 
Moore,  addressed  to  our  Synod,  in  which  he  re- 


460  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ported  to  us,  that  a  committee  was  appointed  by 
their  Convention  to  attend  our  Synod,  with  the 
view  of  making  an  effort  towards  a  more  intimate 
union  between  our  respective  bodies,  whereupon 
the  members  of  that  committee  presented  them- 
selves, and  submitted  their  credentials.  Their 
names  are,  Revs.  Adam  Empie,  G.  T.  Bedell,  and 
Duncan  Cameron,  Esq.  They  were  all  affection- 
ately received,  and  the  following  committee  was 
appointed  by  our  Synod  to  confer  with  our  visit- 
ing brethren  what  possibly  might  be  done  towards 
a  more  intimate  union,  namely:  Revs.  G.  Shober, 
Michael  Ranch,  and  Henry  Ratz,  Esq."  The 
next  day  the  following  report  was  submitted  and 
adopted : 

"  The  committee  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  of  JSTorth  Carolina,  and  the  committee  on 
the  part  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  North  Caro- 
lina and  adjacent  States,  having  conferred  on  the 
subject  of  their  respective  appointments,  have 
agreed  on  the  following  articles : 

"T.  Resolved,  That  we  deem  it  expedient  and 
desirable  that  the  Lutheran  Synod  and  the  Protes- 
tant Episcopal  Church  of  N'orth  Carolina  should 
be  united  together  in  the  closest  bonds  of  friend- 
ship. 

"  II.  Resolved,  That  for  this  purpose  we  will 
mutually  make  such  concessions  as  may  not  be 
inconsistent  with  the  rules  and  regulations  of  our 
respective  Churches,  for  the  purpose  of  promoting 
a  friendly  intercourse. 

"  III.  Resolved,  That  the  Convention  of  the  Prot- 


m  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  461 

estant  Episcopal  Church  may  send  a  delegation  of 
one  or  more  persons  to  the  annual  Synod  of  the 
Lutheran  Church,  which  person  or  persons  shall 
he  entitled  to  an  honorary  seat  in  that  body,  and 
to  the  privilege  of  expressing  their  opinions  and 
voting  in  all  cases  except  when  a  division  is  called 
for;  in  which  case  they  shall  not  vote. 

"  IV.  Resolved,  That  the  Lutheran  Synod  may, 
in  like  manner,  send  a  deputation  to  the  Conven- 
tion of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  who  in 
all  respects  shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  privileges. 

"  V.  Resolved,  That  all  the  ministers  of  the  Luth- 
eran Church  in  union  with  the  Synod  shall  be  en- 
titled to  honorary  seats  in  the  Convention  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  ;  and  the  clergymen 
of  the  said  last-mentioned  Church  shall,  in  like 
manner,  be  entitled  to  honorary  seats  in  the  Synod 
of  the  Lutheran  Church. 

"  The  committee  respectfully  recommend  to  the 
Convention  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church, 
and  to  the  Synod  of  the  Lutheran  Church  the 
adoption  of  the  foregoing  resolutions. 

"  G.  Shober, 

"  Michael  Eauch, 

"  Henry  Ratz, 

''Committee  of  the  Lutheran  Synod. 

"A.  Empie, 

"  Duncan  Cameron, 

"  Committee  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church.'* 

The  report  was  adopted  by  Synod,  and  the  fol- 
lowing persons  were  elected  to  attend  the  next 


462  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Convention  of  the  Episcopal  Church:  Revs.  G. 
Shober,  Jacob  Scherer,  and  Henry  Ratz,  Esq. 

At  the  next  Convention  of  the  Episcopal  Church, 
held  in  Raleigh,  April  18th,  1822,  the  following 
action  was  taken  in  reference  to  this  matter. 

"  The  Rt.  Rev.  President  of  the  Convention  then 
read  a  letter  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Shober  on  the  same 
subject,  after  which  it  was  moved  that  the  report 
be  received,  which  was  unanimously  agreed  to; 
it  w^as  then 

^'Resolved,  that  the  Secretary  be  required  to  ad- 
dress a  letter  to  the  President  of  the  Lutheran 
Synod,  informing  him  of  the  unanimous  adoption 
of  the  above  report. 

"The  following  delegation  to  the  Lutheran 
Synod  was  then  appointed :  Rev.  Messrs.  Miller, 
Davis,  and  Wright,  of  the  clergy;  Messrs.  Alex- 
ander Caldcleugh,  Duncan  Cameron,  and  Dr.  F. 
J.  Hill,  of  the  laity." 

At  the  next  meeting  of  the  North  Carolina 
Synod,  three  of  the  above  delegation,  "  the  Rev. 
R.  J.  Miller,  the  Rev.  R.  Davis,  and  Alexander 
Caldcleugh,  Esq.,  appeared,  were  w^elcomed,  and 
took  their  seats  with  us. 

"  On  information  that  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  will  hold  their  next  annual  Convention  for 
North  Carolina  in  Salisbury,  on  the  second  Thurs- 
day after  Easter,  in  the  year  1823,  the  following 
persons  were  elected  to  attend  the  same,  and  there 
represent  the  Synod,  namely  :  the  Rev.  G.  Shober, 
the  Rev.  Daniel  Scherer,  General  Paul  Barringer, 
and  Colonel  Ratz."     All  of  these  delegates  ap- 


IN   NOUTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  463 

peared    at    said    Convention    and     attended    its 
sessions. 

After  the  year  1823  nothing  more  appears  con- 
cerning the  fraternal  relations  of  these  two  eccle- 
siastical bodies,  although  this  "  bond  of  friend- 
ship" does  not  appear  to  have  been  revoked, 
nevertheless,  the  interchange  of  delegates,  being 
attended  with  some  difficulty  in  those  days  of 
traveling  by  private  conveyance,  fell  practically 
into  disuse. 


Section  3.  Rev.  John  Bachman's  labors  in  Savannah 
and  Ebenezer^  Georgia. 

Although  a  sketch  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in 
the  State  of  Georgia  does  not  strictly  belong  to 
the  history  of  the  same  Church  in  the  Carolinas, 
nevertheless,  as  one.  of  the  Lutheran  ministers  of 
South  Carolina  visited  Georgia,  with  the  view  of 
reororanizins:  and  infusinai:  new  life  into  several 
long-established  Lutheran  congregations  of  that 
State,  it  is  but  proper  that  an  account  of  his  effi- 
cient labors  in  this  direction  should  not  be  passed 
by  unnoticed. 

Rev.  Bachman  having  been  informed  that  at 
one  time  two  Lutheran  congregations  had  been 
established  in  Georgia,  at  Ebenezer  and  Savannah, 
by  the  Salzburgers,  who  commenced  emigrating 
to  Georgia  in  1733,  and  arrived  there  in  March, 
1734,  he  felt  a  desire  to  become  more  intimately 
acquainted  with  the  condition  of  those  churches. 


464  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

During  one  of  the  winter  months  of  1823-4,  Rev. 
Bachman  journeyed  to  Savannah  "  as  a  pioneer 
in  our  holy  cause,"  and  discovered  thataLutheran 
church  had  been  erected  in  that  city  some  time 
before  the  Revolutionary  War,  but  that  it  was 
burnt  down  in  1797.  The  congregation  in  Charles- 
ton, S.  C,  had  contributed  $500  towards  rebuild- 
ing it,  but  nothing  w^as  done  towards  keeping  up 
the  congregation ;  it  had  no  pastor,  and  became 
gradually  disorganized;  the  small  building,  erected 
as  a  Lutheran  church,  "  was  occupied  as  a  Sunday- 
school  by  another  denomination,"  "  and  had  been 
sequestered  for  many  years."  The  prospects  were 
certainly  not  bright,  and  a  few  more  years  of  neg- 
lect would  have  extinguished  the  name  of  Lu- 
theranism  in  Savannah.  Rev.  Bachman's  visit  was 
not  one  moment  too  soon ;  by  means  of  his  well- 
directed  and  energetic  labors  "a  congregation 
was  organized  from  the  materials  which  could  be 
collected,"  and,  "  about  a  month  after  this  event," 
Rev.  S.  A.  Mealy  "  came  to  reside  in  Savannah," 
as  the  pastor  of  that  congregation.  He  was  "  a 
clergyman  who  had  been  raised  up  in  "  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  Charleston,  and  received  his 
theological  training  from  Rev.  Bachman,  whom 
he  acknowledged  as  his  "  spiritual  father."  From 
that  time  forward  the  Lutheran  congregation  in 
Savannah  commenced  to  prosper,  under  the  effi- 
cient labors  of  a  succession  of  pastors,  two  of  whom, 
Revs.  Mealy  and  Karn,  have  been  called  to  their 
rest. 

Rev.  Bachman  having  completed  his  labors  in 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  465 

Savannah,  now  also  *' determined  to  extend  his 
visit  toEbenezec,"  for  he  had  learned  that,  though 
a  Lutheran  congregation  still  existed  in  that  place, 
its  "  aged  pastor  was  fast  sinking  into  the  grave." 
This  pastor  was  "the  Rev.  John  E.  Bergman,  a 
native  of  Germany,  and  the  learned  and  exemplary 
minister  of  this  church  for  the  long  period  of 
thirty-six  years."  He  had  a  son,  who  had  devoted 
himself  to  the  work  of  the  Gospel  ministry,  named 
Rev.  Christopher  F.  Bergman,  "  who  had  received 
a  classical  education,  and  had  carefully  attended 
to  his  theological  studies,  under  the  care  of  his  re- 
vered and  excellent  parent,  and  was  well  qualified 
for  the  ministr}^ ;"  but  not  being  "  aware  that  Lu- 
theranism  had  any  existence  in  the  South,"  he  had 
taken  *Micense  to  preach  the  Gospel  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Presbyterian  Church." 

"  This  was  the  source  of  the  most  unfeigned 
regret,  both  to  his  father  and  his  father's  congre- 
gation. The  latter  was  fully  aware,  that  from  the 
increasing  age  and  infirmities  of  their  venerable 
and  esteemed  pastor,  they  would  soon  have  to 
resign  him  to  the  grave,  and  their  eyes  were 
directed  without  hesitation  to  the  son  as  his  suc- 
cessor. This  wish  was  extremely  natural.  The 
son  had  been  educated  for  the  ministry,  and  was 
possessed  of  the  most  exemplary  piety ;  and  hav- 
ing been  born  and  raised  in  their  neighborhood, 
and  under  their  own  immediate  eye,  he  would  be 
as  a  son  to  the  aged,  and  a  brother  to  the  ^^ounger 
parishioners.  This  fondly  cherished  hope,  how- 
ever, was  nearly  crushed,  when  an  event  of  Provi- 


466  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

dence  occurred,  wliich  brightened  the  scene  around 
them." 

This  event  was  the  opportune  arrival  of  Rev. 
John  Bachman  on  a  visit  to  Ebenezer.  His  dis- 
cerning mind  soon  penetrated  the  difficulty  under 
which  the  younger  Bergman  labored,  and  "was 
made  the  instrument,  in  the  hands  of  God,  of 
giving  a  new  direction  to  Rev.  C.  F.  Bergman's 
theological  views,  of  securing  his  belief  in  the 
doctrines,  and  his  attachment  to  the  institutions 
of  our  beloved  Church,  and  of  cheering  the  last 
hours  of  a  venerable  servant  of  Jesus  Christ." 

Too  much  cannot  be  said  in  praise  of  Rev. 
Bachman's  judicious  labors  in  Ebenezer.  The 
elder  Bergman  had  probably  not  seen  the  face  of 
a  Lutheran  minister  for  a  number  of  years;  how 
it  must  have  brightened  his  last  hours  of  life  to 
have  Rev.  Bachman  standing  at  his  bedside  ere 
he  departed  this  life,  and  to  welcome  him  as  God's 
instrument  in  leading  his  son  back  to  the  Church 
of  his  fathers.  He  could  now^  die  in  peace,  for  his 
eyes  had  seen  what  he  no  longer  expected  to  see 
on  earth.  And  what  a  blessing  was  this  visit  to 
the  Ebenezer  congregation  also;  it  was  not  only 
saved  to  the  Lutheran  Church,  but  it  was  also 
provided  with  a  Lutheran  pastor,  and  he  the  one 
whom  the  members  preferred  above  all  others. 

It  is  necessary  yet  to  add,  that  the  Rev.  C.  F. 
Bergman  attended  the  meeting  of  the  newly  organ- 
ized Synod  of  South  Carolina,  held  in  St.  John's 
Church,  Lexington  District,  I^ovember  18th,  1824, 
where  he  "  was  solemnly  ordained  to  the  Gospel 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  467 

ministry  by  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Bacliman,  Ilersher, 
and  Dreher." 

All  these  items  of  intelligence,  concerning  Rev. 
Bachman's  labors  in  Georgia,  have  been  mainly 
derived  from  Rev.  Mealy's  "Funeral  Sermon 
occasioned  by  the  death  of  Rev.  C.  F.  Bergman," 
published  in  Savannah,  A.D.  1832. 


Section  ^.    Organization  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of 
South  Carolina^  A.D.  .1824^, 

The  time  had  now  arrived,  when  the  number  of 
ministers  made  it  possible,  and  the  wants  of  the 
Church  made  it  necessary,  to  organize  a  Lutheran 
Synod  in  South  Carolina;  accordingly,  "on  the 
14th  day  of  January,  1824,  the  following  clergy- 
men of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  met  at 
St.  Michael's  Church,  Lexington  District,  S.  C, 
with  the  intention  of  organizing  a  Synod  for  South 
Carolina  and  adjacent  States,  namely:  Revs.  John 
P.  Franklow,  John  Y.  Meetze,  Godfrey  Dreher, 
Michael  Rauch,  Jacob  Moser,  all  residing  in  Lex- 
ington District,  and  Rev.  Samuel  Hersher  from 
Orangeburg  District,  S.  C." 

These  ministers  were  members  of  the  l^orth 
Carolina  Synod ;  those  residing  in  Lexington  Dis- 
trict have  already  been  introduced  to  the  reader. 
The  Rev.  Samuel  Hersher  had  become  connected 
with  that  Synod  only  since  1822;  he  was  a  student 
of  Rev.  Mr.  Meierhoffer,  of  Rockingham  County, 
Virginia,  and  recommended  by  him  as  worthy  to 


468  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

become  a  member  of  Synod.  He  was  accordingly 
examined,  licensed,  and  sent  by  the  iN'orth  Caro- 
lina Synod  to  labor  in  the  vacant  congregations  of 
Orangeburg  District,  S.  C. 

After  due  consideration,  the  ministers  present 
unanimously  resolved,  "that  the  situation  and 
wants  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  churches  in 
*  South  Carolina '  require  that  a  Synod  be  now 
organized." 

Eev.  G.  Dreher  was  then  elected  President,  and 
Rev.  S.  Hersher,  Secretary.  The  first  item  of 
business  was  the  ordination  of  Eev.  S.  Hersher. 
Five  lay  delegates  now  handed  in  their  certificates, 
and  were  admitted  as  members  of  Synod. 

Rev.  John  C.  A.  Schonberg,  a  licentiate  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Synod,  presented  his  license  with 
the  request  to  have  it  renewed,  which  was  accord- 
ingly done  on  the  next  day. 

"  On  motion,  it  was  resolved,  that  the  Augsburg 
Confession  of  Faith  be  the  point  of  union  in  our 
Church. 

"  It  was  resolved,  that  the  Revs.  G.  Dreher,  S. 
Hersher,  and  M.  Rauch  be  nominated  a  committee, 
for  the  purpose  of  entering  into  a  friendly  corres- 
pondence with  the  ^N'orth  Carolina  Synod." 

On  the  18th  of  JSTovember  of  the  same  year,  the 
South  Carolina  Synod  met  at  St.  John's  Church, 
Lexington  District,  at  which  meeting  eight  Lu- 
theran ministers  were  present,  and  two,  Revs. 
Franklow  and  Mealy,  were  absent.  Revs.  Bach- 
man,  Bergman,  and  Mealy  were  added  to  the  list 
of  members  of  Synod,  and  nine  lay  delegates  were 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  469 

admitted  as  representatives  from  the  various  con- 
gregations. 

It  was  reported  to  Synod  that  Rev.  Jacob  Moser 
had  been  ordained  by  the  committee  appointed  by 
Synod,  on  the  4th  of  April;  and  that  on  the  20th 
of  May,  Revs.  Dreher,  Franklow,  and  Hersher  had 
ordained  the  Rev.  Stephen  A.  Mealy.  Rev.  C.  F. 
Bergman  was  ordained  at  this  meeting  of  Synod. 
The  ;N"ew  York  English  Lutheran  Hymn  book  was 
recommended  to  be  introduced  by  the  ministers 
into  their  churches. 

The  most  interesting  item  of  information,  con- 
tained in  the  minutes  of  that  synodical  meeting,  is 
the  report  of  the  committee  on  the  ^'  State  of 
the  Church,"  which  is  as  follows : 

"  There  are  in  the  State  of  South  Carolina 
twenty-four  Evangelical  Lutheran  churches,  and 
in  the  State  of  Georgia,  two.  Of  those  in  South 
Carolina,  one  is  in  Charleston,  under  the  care  of 
Rev.  J.  Bachman,  having  275  communicants. 
Three  under  the  care  of  Rev.  S.  Hersher,  having 
880  members.  Six  under  the  care  of  Revs.  J.  Y. 
Meetze,  J.  P.  Franklow,  and  G.  Dreher,  having 
260  members.  Four  under  the  care  of  Rev.  M. 
Ranch,  having  380  members.  Four  under  the 
care  of  Rev.  J.  Moser,  having  136  members. 

''  Of  those  in  the  State  of  Georgia,  one  is  in 
Savannah,  under  the  care  of  Rev.  S.  A.  Mealy, 
having  35  families.  One  at  Ebenezer,  under  the 
care  of  Rev.  C.  F.  Bergman,  having  130  members. 
Six  churches  are  vacant  in  South  Carolina,  and 
two  or  more  congregations  might  be  formed  in  the 


470  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

State,  if  Lutheran  clergymen  could  be  obtained. 
The  number  of  communicants  in  our  churches  has 
considerably  increased,  and  that,  on  the  whole, 
there  are  some  flattering  prospects  in  our  Church." 
The  committee  lamented  "  that  whilst  the  har- 
vest is  plenteous,  the  laborers  are  few." 


Section  5.  Removals  to  the  West^  and  Missionary 
Labors  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in  Illinois 
and  other  States. 

Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  the  vast  emi- 
gration from  the  State  of  iTorth  Carolina  to  other 
new  States  and  Territories.  This  drain  upon  the 
strength  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  JS"orth  Caro- 
lina continued  for  many  successive  years;  colo- 
nies from  St.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus  County, 
and  from  the  neighboring  congregations,  may  be 
found  in  most  of  the  Korthw^estern  States,  as  well 
as  in  Tennessee,  Missouri,  and  Arkansas.  By 
means  of  this  extensive  colonizinsc  in  new  coun- 
tries,  the  labors  and  influence  of  the  early  pastors 
in  I^orth  Carolina  are  felt  over  a  much  greater 
extent  of  country  than  what  is  included  in  the 
boundaries  of  the  congregations  they  served. 

For  a  long  time  those  Western  colonies  were 
destitute  of  the  means  of  grace;  they  naturally 
looked  to  the  Synod  of  l^orth  Carolina,  under 
whose  fostering  care  they  had  been  brought  up  in 
the  Church  of  their  fathers,  to  be  supplied  with 
pastors. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  471 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Synod  in  1825  an  urgent 
call  came  from  Union  County,  Illinois,  signed  by 
forty-three  persons,  for  a  pastor  or  missionary  who 
would  be  able  to  preach  in  the  German  and  Eng- 
lish languages,  establish  schools,  and  labor  for  the 
welfare  of  the  Church.  They  furthermore  de- 
clared, that  if  their  spiritual  w^ants  be  not  soon  sup- 
plied, the  consequences  to  them  and  their  children 
would  be  very  injurious. 

The  letter  was  read  in  open  Synod,  and  the 
Secretary  was  required  to  write  to  those  congre- 
gations in  Illinois.  Rev.  Wm.  Jenkins  was  then 
requested  to  visit  those  people,  and  a  resolution 
was  passed  to  send  a  letter  to  Rev.  Samuel 
Schmucker,  beseeching  him,  if  it  be  possible,  to 
have  a  missionary  sent  to  that  State. 

In  the  minutes  of  the  Synod  of  1827,  the  Com- 
mittee on  Letters  and  Petitions  presented  the  fol- 
lowing: 

*'No.  11  contains  a  petition  from  three  congre- 
gations in  Union  County,  Illinois,  in  which  they 
give  a  mournful  description  of  their  destitute  con- 
dition ;  pray  that  they  may  be  visited  by  the  Rev. 
Jacob  Scherer,  and,  if  he  cannot  comply  with  this 
their  request,  that  the  Synod  would  send  them 
another,  and  promise  to  give  him  an  adequate  sup- 
port. Your  committee  w^ould  recommend  these 
congregations  to  the  particular  notice  of  this 
Synod,  for  if  they  are  not  soon  supplied  with  a 
minister,  they  will  be  dispersed." 

Whereupon  it  was 

''  Resolved,  That,  as  it  is  impracticable  for  the 


472  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Rev.  J.  Scherer  to  visit  those  petitioning  congrega- 
tions in  Illinois,  the  Rev.  John  C.  A.  Schonberg 
visit  them  immediately,  and,  if  practicable,  to 
locate  among  them ;  and  that  he  receive  ten  dol- 
lars out  of  the  synodical  treasury  to  defray  the 
necessarj^  traveling  expenses  to  Illinois." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Schonberg  accepted  this  appoint- 
ment of  Synod,  and  moved  to  Illinois  in  1827,  and 
thus  the  ]!^orth  Carolina  Synod  has  the  honor  of 
sending  the  pioneer  missionary  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  to  that  State.  Rev.  Schonberg  labored 
there  for  several  years,  and  continued  his  connec- 
tion with  the  North  Carolina  Synod,  when,  in 
1829,  he  wrote  a  letter  to  Synod,  stating  "that  in 
consequence  of  indisposition  he  has  been  necessi- 
tated to  resign  his  churches  in  Illinois." 

About  the  close  of  the  year  1831,  the  Rev. 
Daniel  Scherer,  the  successor  of  Rev.  Storch  as 
pastor  of  St.  John's  Church,  Cabarrus  County, 
]^.  C,  felt  it  to  be  his  duty  to  remove  to  Illinois, 
and  succeeded  Rev.  Schonberg  as  pastor  of  the 
Lutheran  congregations  in  Union  County,  Illinois. 
In  1833  he  wrote  a  letter  to  Synod,  "containing 
the  pleasing  information  of  his  success  in  forming 
a  congregation  in  Hillsboro,  Illinois,  consisting  of 
thirty-five  communing  members." 

Professor  Haverstick,  of  Philadelphia,  who  vis- 
ited Rev.  D.  Scherer  and  his  congregations  in 
1835,  during  his  exploring  missionary  tour  in  the 
West,  having  been  sent  by  the  Pennsylvania 
Synod,  speaks  of  the  untiring  labors  of  Rev. 
Scherer  in  the  most  exalted  terms,  mentions  that 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  473 

he  frequently  travels  150  miles  from  home  on 
horseback,  in  order  to  minister  to  the  spiritual 
wants  of  such  colonies  as  are  not  included  in  his 
own  immediate  charge,  and  this  of  necessity,  in- 
asmuch as  he  was  the  only  resident  Lutheran  min- 
ister at  that  time  in  the  entire  State  of  Illinois. 
Kev.  Scherer  labored  faithfully  in  that  State  to 
the  close  of  his  life,  April  4th,  1852,  and  may 
Justly  be  considered  the  father  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  Illinois. 

Rev.  Wm.  Jenkins,  who  became  connected  with 
the  N^orth  Carolina  Synod  in  1824,  upon  the  rec- 
ommendation of  Rev.  B.  F.  Schatfer,  President 
of  the  Maryland  Synod,  was  sent  the  following 
September  to  tlie  State  of  Tennessee,  and  labored 
in  the  Lutheran  congregations  at  Duck  River, 
"where  he  was  received  with  joy,  and  kindly 
treated."  He  formed  additional  congregations  in 
Franklin  and  Lincoln  Counties,  and  reports  hav- 
ing found  a  large  settlement  of  Lutherans  at  Fau- 
gunder  Creek,  near  Jackson,  who  were  anxious 
to  obtain  a  pastor.  He  further  states:  "Since 
last  Synod  I  have  traveled  3000  miles  on  horse- 
back, preached  175  times,  baptized  84  children 
and  14  adults,  admitted  to  church  membership 
34  persons,  and  had  8  funerals."  All  these  con- 
gregations were  admitted  under  the  care  of  the 
ISTorth  Carolina  Synod  in  1825,  and  Rev.  Wm. 
Jenkins  was  acknowledged  as  their  pastor,  having 
located  himself  in  Bedford  County,  Tennessee, 
serving  ten  congregations,  where  he  was  still 
laboring  as  a  member  of  the  ^N'orth  Carolina  Synod 

40 


474  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

as  late  as  1835,  when  he  connected  himself  with 
some  other  Synod,  but  did  not  remove  from  Ten- 
nessee until  1854,  when  he  became  the  pastor  ot 
the  Lovettsville  charge,  in  Loudon  County,  Vir- 
ginia. 

Shortly  after  the  year  1811,  when  Eev.  R.  J.  Mil- 
ler was  first  sent  on  an  exploring  missionary  tour 
through  the  State  of  Virginia,  all  those  Lutheran 
congregations,  situated  in  the  southwestern  part 
of  Virginia,  with  their  pastors,  connected  them- 
selves, with  but  few  exceptions,  with  the  North 
Carolina  Synod ;  so  intimately  were  those  churches 
united  with  that  Synod,  that  five  of  its  annual 
sessions  were  held  in  the  State  of  Virginia. 

Much  missionary  labor  was  devoted  to  that  field 
and  with  good  results.  Originally  this  territory 
was  connected  with  the  Pennsylvania  Synod,  and 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Flohr  was  the  first  regular  minister 
who  labored  there,  but  its  contiguity  to  North 
Carolina  brought  it  under  the  influence  of  the 
Synod  of  that  State,  which  arrangement  was  con- 
tinued until  the  year  1842,  when  the  Synod  ot 
Western  Virginia  was  formed. 


Section  6.  Bajpid  Progress  of  the  South  Carolina 
Synod,  and  the  Missionary  Labors  of  Revs, 
Scheck,  Schwartz,  and  W.  D.  Strohel. 

As  soon  as  the  South  Carolina  Synod  was  organ- 
ized it  commenced  to  increase,  and  its  influence  was 
extended  rapidly;  all  the  strength  of  the  Lutheran 


IN  NORTH   AND  SOUTH   CAROLINA.  475 

Church  in  that  State  and  Georgia  became  concen- 
trated, and  the  afiiiirs  of  Synod  were  managed 
with  wisdom  and  prudence.  A  desire  was  mani- 
fested at  once  to  labor  earnestly  and  faithfully  for 
the  welfare  of  the  Church,  and  everywhere  success 
attended  the  etforts  of  its  ministers. 

However,  as  there  were  still  many  vacant  con- 
greo:ations  in  the  bounds  of  Synod,  at  its  second 
session,  in  1825,  it  was— 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  this  Synod  be 
requested  to  write  to  the  different  Northern 
Synods,  and  endeavor  to  ascertain  whether  it  may 
not  be  practicable  to  obtain  well-educated  Lu- 
theran ministers  to  supply  our  vacant  churches, 
or  to  labor  as  missionaries  within  the  bounds  of 
this  Synod." 

This  appeal  was  not  made  in  vain.  The  next  year 
the  Kev.  C.  B.  Wessells,  a  licentiate  from  the  State 
of  New  York,  commenced  his  labors  in  South  Caro- 
lina. He  opened  a  school  at  Leesville,  Lexington 
District,  and  preached  occasionally;  but  "he  soon 
gave  evidence  of  mental  derangement,"  and  re- 
turned to  the  North.  Li  1827,  the  Eev.  John  D. 
Scheck  arrived  from  Maryland,  and  labored  as  the 
first  missionary  in  the  bounds  of  the  Synod. 

From  Rev.  Bachman's  congregation  in  Charles- 
ton, three  useful  and  well-educated  young  men 
entered  the  ministerial  ranks,  the  Revs.  S.  A. 
Mealy,  J.  G.  Schwartz  and  W.  D.  Strobel,  and 
from  the  interior  congregations  the  Synod  received 
three  additional  ministers  in  the  Revs.  J.  Wingard, 


476  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

J.  C.  Hope  and  Daniel  Dreher.  In  this  manner 
was  the  Synod  greatly  increased. 

The  Eev.  J.  J).  Scheck  was  employed  by  Synod 
to  make  a  missionary  tour  through  the  State  for 
the  purpose  of  organizing  new  congregations,  and 
also  to  visit  the  vacant  churches  as  much  as  possi- 
ble. He  commenced  his  labors  June  2d,  1827, 
and  the  following  extract  from  his  journal  was 
presented  by  the  committee: 

*'He  labored  one  week  at  Amelia,  preaching 
every  day :  he  represents  those  people  as  being 
wealthy  and  respectable,  and  possessing  the  largest 
church  of  any  denomination  in  this  part  of  the 
country.  After  having  preached  at  Sandy  Run 
and  at  jSTazareth  Churches,  he  labored  at  Lexing- 
ton Court-house.  Near  North  Edisto  River  he 
found  a  number  of  Lutherans  who  are  very  desti- 
tute of  spiritual  privileges,  and  have  not  heard  a 
sermon  from  any  of  our  ministers  for  three  years, 
yet  none  have  left  our  Church,  though  solicited  to 
do  so.     They  are  now  building  a  house  of  worship. 

"Mr.  Scheck  also  visited  Edgefield,  where  he 
found  many  of  our  people  who  have  not  been 
visited  for  many  years  by  any  of  our  ministers. 
He  represents  their  condition  as  truly  deplorable, 
but  says  that  they  are  now  building  a  church,  and 
expect  to  hear  preaching  from  some  of  our  ministers. 
Sunday,  July  1st,  he  preached  in  Long  Church, 
where  also  the  people  were  very  desirous  of  ob- 
taining a  Lutheran  minister.  On  Monday,  at 
"Wise's  school-house  (Newberry);  here  he  found 
the  people  very  destitute;    but  there  are  many 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  477 

persons  who  would  be  members  of  our  Church 
immediately,  if  supplied  with  preaching.  Tliey 
are  both  able  and  willing  to  build  a  place  of  wor- 
ship and  support  a  minister. 

"On  Thursday,  Mr.  S.  preached  in  the  settle- 
ments of  G.  Egner  to  fine  congregations,  who  hear 
the  word  but  once  in  three  weeks  from  any  de- 
nomination. Many  of  our  people  here  are  wealthy, 
and  desirous  of  obtaining  a  minister  among  them. 
They  have  already  commenced  the  building  of  a 
church.  On  the  15th  and  17th  he  preached  in  the 
two  churches  in  Barnwell  District,  both  of  which 
are  in  a  destitute  condition,  and  have  been  so  for 
five  3^ears.  Some  of  the  people  have  united  them- 
selves to  other  societies;  they  have  resolved  to 
bring  their  destitute  situation  to  our  view,  and 
request  us  to  send  our  ministers  to  preach  to  them 
occasionally. 

"The  neighborhood  of  Myers,  Rhinehardt's, 
Wise's,  Peterbaugh  and  Egner's  are  entirely  des- 
titute of  the  means  of  grace,  and  are  loudly  call- 
ing upon  us  in  the  words  of  the  man  of  Macedonia, 
Come  over  and  help  us." 

February  11th,  1828,  the  Eev.  J.  G.  Schwartz 
was  employed  as  a  missionary,  and  the  following 
interesting  items  are  taken  from  his  report:     . 

"I  first  visited  a  few  Lutherans  east  of  Broad 
River,  in  the  upper  part  of  Richland  District,  who 
occasionally  hear  preaching  from  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Dreher.  The  people  of  this  neighborhood  are 
principall}^  descendants  of  members  of  our  Church. 
From    this   I   passed    over   into   Newberry,   and 


478  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

preached  twice  in  Mount  Pleasant  Church,  owned 
in  part  by  Lutherans.  There  is  here  a  fine  con- 
gregation, and  the  people  appear  favorably  disposed 
towards  our  Church.  A  neat  and  commodious 
building  was  about  to  be  erected  for  the  exclusive 
use  of  Mr.  Scheck.  He  can  preach  there,  how- 
ever, but  once  a  month. 

"From  this  I  passed  into  Spartanburg,  and 
preached  at  the  residence  of  a  member  of  our 
Church;  the  house  was  full,  and  the  people  re- 
markably attentive.  Some  of  the  Lutherans  here 
have  attached  themselves  to  other  denominations, 
in  consequence  of  the  absence  of  their  own.  Six 
miles  beyond  the  village  I  preached  at  the  resi- 
dence of  a  gentleman  who  had  been  brought  up 
to  the  Lutheran  Church.  He  informed  me  of 
several  families  who,  from  similar  circumstances 
with  himself,  had  connected  themselves  with 
other  societies.  I  next  preached  at  Spartanburg 
Court-house,  where  also  there  is  a  great  call  for 
regular  preaching.  The  day  after,  I  preached  at 
the  house  of  a  Lutheran  family  below  the  village. 

"On  Good  Friday  I  preached  at  Sandy  Run 
Church.  This  place  is  common  as  a  house  of 
worship  to  Lutherans,  Baptists  and  Methodists. 
Rev.  Mr.  Wingard  has  the  care  of  the  Lutherans, 
and  ministers  to  them  once  a  month.  I  subse- 
quently passed  through  Chester,  York,  Lancaster, 
Chesterfield,  Darlington,  Sumter  and  Orange- 
burg, and  preached  wherever  I  had  an  opportu- 
nity. From  all  that  has  come  to  my  knowledge, 
I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying,  that  twelve  or  four- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  479 

teen  Lutheran  ministers  could  find  abundant  em- 
ployment in  this  State.  Descendants  of  Germans 
are  to  be  found  in  almost  every  part  of  the  coun- 
try, and  here  I  might  deplore  that  prejudice  which 
has  so  fatally  operated,  and  in  some  places  does 
still  operate  upon  the  minds  of  those  who  con- 
tinue to  minister  to  their  people  in  the  German 
language.  I  know  it  has  been  in  part  a  matter 
of  necessity;  but  had  those  who  removed  from 
Germany  to  this  country  endeavored  to  introduce 
the  language  of  their  adopted  country,  our  Church 
might  now,  in  all  probability,  nearly  be  equal  to 
the  united  churches  of  other  denominations." 

During  the  greater  part  of  the  year  1830,  the 
Rev.  W.  D.  Strobel  was  engaged  as  a  missionary, 
and  his  labors  were  blessed  wtth  practical  results. 
Several  important  congregations  were  organized, 
and  the  vacant  churches  greatly  revived  and 
strengthened.     He  reports  as  follows: 

"Immediately  after  receiving  my  appointment 
in  Savannah,  I  made  it  my  business  to  visit  the 
congregations  designated  for  my  care  in  the  min- 
utes of  the  Synod,  to  wit :  St.  Mcholas,  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's, and  Erwin's,  at  the  Saltketchers ; 
Mount  Calvary  in  Edgefield;  Brandenburg's,  in 
Orangeburg.  In  addition  to  these,  I  took  under 
my  care  l^azareth,  Lexington  Court-house,  Piatt 
Springs,  all  in  Lexington  District.  In  all  these 
stations  I  have  kept  up  regular  appointments 
during  the  year,  with  the  exception  of  Erwin's, 
where  I  considered,  after  preaching  some  time, 
that  there  was  no  prospect  of  success. 


480  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

^'I  have  encouraged  the  congregations  to  meet 
at  their  churches  on  the  Lord's  day,  and  have  en- 
gaged their  elders  in  reading  sermons  and  other 
religious  exercises.  During  the  year  we  have  suc- 
ceeded in  building  a  church  at  Brandenburg's,  to 
be  known  by  the  name  of  Shiloh.  A  large  church 
is  in  a  state  of  forwardness  at  Lexino^ton  Court- 
house,  and  that  at  Il^azareth  will  soon  be  com- 
pleted. From  the  vicinity  of  so  manj^  members 
of  our  Church,  we  expect  that  Lexington  Court- 
house will  become  one  of  the  most  important 
stations." 

The  above  reports  from  Eevs.  Scheck,  Schwartz 
and  Strobel  have  been  very  much  abbreviated, 
and  only  that  much  as  has  reference  to  the  history 
of  the  Church  has  been  given  as  literally  as  pos- 
sible. 

Section  7.  Death  of  Rev.  Charles  A.  G.  S torch,  in 
1831,  and  arrival  of  other  Lutheran  Ministers 
in  North  Carolina. 

It  is,  as  a  miitter  of  course,  not  expected  to  give 
a  lengthy  obituary  notice  of  every  departed  Lu- 
theran minister  who  labored  in  ]^orth  or  South 
Carolina,  but  when  such  a  prominent  servant  of 
God  as  the  Rev.  Charles  Augustus  Gottlieb  Storch 
is  called  by  death  to  his  long  rest,  it  creates  a  void 
that  is  not  soon  filled,  and  a  wound  so  deep,  how- 
ever long  the  event  may  be  expected,  which  is  not 
liealed  in  a  short  period  of  time.  The  last  link 
which  bound  the  past  with  the  present  in  the  es- 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  481 

tablishment  of  Lntheranism  in  N'orth  Carolina  was 
now  broken,  and  Eev.  Storch  descended  to  his 
grave  sadly  lamented  by  all  the  members  of  his 
entire  pastoral  charge,  and  his  loss  was  deeply  de- 
plored by  the  whole  Synod,  of  which  he  was  one 
of  the  early  founders.  He  went  to  his  grave  with 
the  highest  honors  upon  his  hoary  head,  as  one  of 
the  fathers  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  ISTorth  Caro- 
lina. 

A  notice  of  the  funeral  occasion  of  Rev.  Storch, 
in  one  of  the  secular  papers,  says:  "  The  deep  and 
unrestrained  emotions  of  the  assembly  of  his  spir- 
itual children  at  the  grave  of  their  departed  friend 
evinced  the  magnitude  of  their  loss,  and  the  ex- 
tent of  his  worth." 

From  the  minutes  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod, 
giving  a  lengthy  account  of  his  life  and  labors, 
the  following  extract  is  made: 

"He  enjoyed  the  love  of  all  his  dear  congrega- 
tions; he  refused  sundry  lucrative  situations  to 
other  cities  out  of  love  to  his  flock;  and  as  soon 
as  a  Synod  of  the  Lutheran  Church  was  formed  in 
North  Carolina,  he  was  annually  elected  Presi- 
dent, whenever  he  could  be  present,  and  his  nearly 
thirty-seven  years'  service  will  remain  in  blessed 
memory.  Since  a  few  years  his  sickness,  which 
often  kept  him  in  bed,  compelled  him  to  give  up 
his  congregations,  but  he  always  participated  in 
the  happiness  and  woe  of  the  Church  and  his 
former  flock  by  praises,  prayer,  sighing  and  tem- 
poral assistance.  The  last  days  of  his  life  were 
very  painful,  until   his  friend,  Jesus,  whom  he 

41 


482  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

loved,  took  him  to  his  eternal  rest  on  the  27th  of 
March,  1831,  where  all  weakness  and  trouhle  are 
buried  under  his  feet. 

"Two  funeral  discourses  were  delivered  at 
Synod  in  remembrance  of  our  venerable  and  lately 
departed  father,  Charles  A.  Storch,  to  a  numerous 
and  attentive  audience.  The  German  discourse 
was  on  John  12  :  36,  by  the  Rev.  G.  Shober;  the 
English  by  the  Eev.  D.  P.  Rosenmiller,  on  John 
20  :  17." 

The  following  extract  is  taken  from  Dr.  Hazelius' 
History  of  the  American  Lutheran  Church,  pp. 
224-226: 

"The  Church  suffered  a  great  loss  in  the  de- 
parture of  Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch.  His  missionary 
tours  in  South  Carolina  are  still  held  in  grateful 
remembrance  by  many,  who  through  his  instru- 
mentality were  first  brought  from  darkness  to 
light,  and  from  the  kingdom  of  Satan  to  the  living 
God.  As  a  man  of  science  he  was  highly  esteemed 
by  all  who  knew  him  in  that  respect.  As  a  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel,  he  richly  possessed  the  rare 
talent  to  create  a  deep  interest  for  his  subject  in 
the  well-informed,  while  he  was  fully  understood 
by  persons  of  no  education.  As  friend,  husband, 
and  father,  his  remembrance  will  be  cherished, 
blessed,  and  honored,  so  long  as  one  friend  and 
one  child  lives,  to  feel  what  he  was  to  them  in 
these  capacities  in  life. 

"During  the  last  six  years  of  his  earthly  exist- 
ence, bodily  infirmities  prevented  him  from  attend- 
ing the  services  of  the  house  of  God,  but  still  he 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  483 

cheerfully  embraced  everj^  opportunity  to  counsel 
and  comfort  the  afflicted.  His  last  illness  con- 
tinued for  nine  weeks,  and  he  frequently  gave, 
both  to  his  family  and  visiting  friends,  the  assur- 
ance of  his  firm  hope  of  eternal  life,  and  of  his 
desire  that  true  piety  and  the  religion  of  the  heart 
might  become  general  among  mankind,  and  es- 
pecially that  these  blessings  might  be  universal  in 
the  churches  to  whom  he  had  administered  the 
word  of  life.  He  departed  full  of  faith  and  hope 
in  his  Redeemer." 

In  the  Evangelical  Review,  vol.  viii,  pp.  402  and 
403,  the  following  additional  facts  are  stated: 

"He  was  familiar  with  the  Hebrew,  Greek  and 
Latin,  and  it  is  said  he  could  converse  fluently  in 
^ve  or  six  different  languages.  Such  was  his 
thirst  for  knowledge  that  he  kept  pace  with  the 
improvements  of  the  age,  and  was  constantly  add- 
ing to  his  stores  of  information.  His  mind  was 
active  and  discriminating,  and  so  well  disciplined 
that  he  had  no  difficulty  in  grasping  any  subject 
that  claimed  his  attention.  It  is  said  his  library 
was  large  and  valuable,  embracing  quite  a  number 
of  distinguished  German  authors.  Many  of  these 
he  bequeathed  to  our  Theological  Seminary  at 
Gettysburg,  of  which  he  was  elected  one  of  the 
first  directors,  and  in  whose  prosperity  he  always 
manifested  a  deep  interest.  The  most  of  his 
books  are,  however,  in  the  possession  of  J^ortli 
Carolina  College,  at  Mount  Pleasant,  Cabarrus 
County,  K  C. 

"Rev.  Samuel  Rothrock,  who  succeeded  him  in 


484  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

one  of  his  churches,  writes:  ^Mr.  Storch  was 
truly  a  man  of  God !  Many  are  yet  living  who 
formerly  sat  under  his  preaching,  in  whose  hearts 
he  is  sacredly  embalmed,  and  who  still  cherish  for 
him  the  most  profound  respect.'" 

The  following  inscription  is  engraved  upon  the 
tablet  in  the  adjoining  God's  acre  of  Organ  Church, 
which  marks  the  spot  where  this  useful  servant  of 
the  Lord  was  laid  down  to  rest:  *' Sacred  to  the 
memory  of  the  Rev.  Charles  A.  G.  Storch,  Pastor 
of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church;  who  was 
born  on  the  16th  day  of  June,  A.D.  1764,  and  de- 
parted this  life  on  the  27th  day  of  March,  1831. 
Aged  6Q  years,  9  months  and  11  days." 

In  addition  to  those  pastors  laboring  in  Virginia 
and  retainino'  their  connection  with  the  North 
Carolina  Synod,  namely,  Revs.  Jacob  Scherer  and 
Daniel  J.  Hauer,  who  removed  from  North  Caro- 
lina to  that  State,  and  Revs.  Martin  Walther, 
Andrew  Seechrist  and  John  P.  Cline,  the  Synod 
received  a  considerable  accession  to  its  ministerial 
ranks  in  Revs.  Henry  Graeber,  Jacob  Kaempfer, 
William  Artz  and  David  P.  Rosenmiller,  all  of 
whom  became  connected  with  the  Synod  in  1828. 

"Rev.  Henry  Graeber  was  for  a  number  of  years 
a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  Maryland  and 
Virginia,  and  lately  accepted  a  call  to  Lincoln 
County,  N.  C,  where  he  preaches  to  six  congre- 
gations. The  people  there  are  generally  liberal 
in  supporting  the  Gospel.  As  an  evidence  of  this, 
a  certain  individual  made  a  donation  of  fifty  acres 
of  land  to  be  appropriated  as  a  parsonage,  and  a 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  485 

commodious  house  was  built  on  it  by  the  congre- 
gation, where  Rev.  Mr.  Graeber  now  lives." 

The  Revs.  Artz,  Kaempfer,  and  Rosenmiller 
w^ere  three  young  men,  who  had  completed  their 
theological  course  of  studies  at  the  Seminary  at 
Gettysburg,  Pennsylvania,  and  came  to  labor  in 
I^orth  Carolina  upon  the  recommendation  of  Pro- 
fessor S.  S.  Schmucker.  They  were  admitted  at 
once  as  members  of  the  Synod.  Rev.  Artz  took 
charge  of  the  vacant  congregations  in  Guilford 
County;  their  pastor,  Rev.  Jacob  Scherer,  having 
removed  to  Virginia.  Rev.  Rosenmiller  located 
himself  in  Lexington,  the  seat  of  justice  in  David- 
son County,  where  he  opened  a  classical  school, 
and  attended  to  the  duties  of  pastor  among  several 
of  the  churches  in  the  county,  and  the  one  lately 
established  in  the  village.  Rev.  Kaempfer  became 
the  pastor  of  Organ  Church  and  some  of  the  other 
contiguous  congregations,  made  vacant  by  the  re- 
moval of  their  pastor,  Rev.  Daniel  Scherer,  to  the 
State  of  Illinois. 


Section  8.  Frincijpal  Transactions  of  the  Tennessee 
Synod,  from  1820  to  18SS. 

The  name  of  this  Synod  would  indicate  that  its 
labors  were  confined  to  the  State  of  Tennessee; 
such  is,  however,  not  the  case,  as  that  Synod,  like 
some  other  Lutheran  Synods  in  this  country,  has 
many  congregations  in  the  States  adjoining.  Some 
of  these  churches  are  located  in  North  and  South 


486  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Carolina,  and  hence  the  history  of  the  Tennessee 
Synod  also  belongs  properlj^  to  the  history  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas. 

As  stated  before,  the  Tennessee  Sj^nod  was 
organized  July  17th,  1820;  at  that  meeting  the 
German  language  was  made  the  business  language 
of  Synod,  and  all  its  transactions  were  to  be  printed 
in  German. 

All  articles  of  faith  and  practice,  as  well  as  all 
books  used  in  public  worship,  are  to  be  arranged 
according  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
and  the  Augsburg  Confession. 

Two  ranks  of  the  ministerial  office  were  ac- 
knowledged, namely.  Pastor  and  Deacon,  both 
of  which  requiring  a  separate  ordination  by  the 
imposition  of  hands.  Only  the  pastors  had  the 
right  to  perform  all  ministerial  acts ;  the  deacons 
could  catechize,  read  a  sermon  to  a  congregation, 
bury  the  dead,  exhort,  and,  in  case  of  necessity, 
baptize,  provided  no  pastor  can  be  obtained. 

Each  congregation  had  the  right  to  send  a  dele- 
gate to  Synod,  but  the  number  of  the  lay-delegates' 
votes  was  limited  to  the  number  of  ministers  pres- 
ent at  Synod. 

At  the  fifth  session  of  Synod,  Rev.  I^ehemiah 
Bonham,  of  Tazewell  County,  Virginia,  an  English 
Lutheran  minister,  with  his  congregations,  was 
admitted  as  a  member  of  Synod.  Rev.  Bonham 
became  an-  active  worker  in  the  Lord's  vinej^ard, 
and  accomplished  much  good. 

In  1825  the  minutes  of  Synod  were  printed  also 
in  the  English  language.     At  that  same  meeting 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  487 

"a  memorial,  subscribed  b}^  nine  persons,"  was 
handed  in,  "in  which  the  Synod  is  requested  to 
make  another  attempt  to  eft'ect  a  union  with  the 
ministers  of  the  iTorth  Carolina  Synod;  yet  so, 
that  the  genuine  Lutheran  doctrine  be  not  thereby 
suppressed." 

November  27th,  1825,  Rev.  Paul  Henkel  departed 
tliis  life  at  New  Market,  Virginia.  He  had  been 
in  the  ministry  forty-four  years,  and,  at  the  time 
of  his  decease,  had  arrived  at  an  advanced  age  of 
life. 

During  the  seventli  session  of  the  Synod,  the 
following  action  was  taken  in  reference  to  tlie 
difficulty  respecting  the  English  language.  "  As 
several  members  of  this  body  do  not  understand 
the  German  language,  and  yet  do  not  desire  to 
form  a  separate  Synod,  it  was,  therefore, 

'^Resolved,  that  David  Henkel  should  act  as  in- 
terpreter to  them;  furthermore,  that  tlie  business 
of  Synod  shall  be  transacted  in  the  German  lan- 
guage during  the  first  three  days,  afterwards  the 
English  language  shall  be  used." 

At  the  ninth  session  a  new  constitution  was 
adopted,  and  appended  to  the  printed  minutes. 
Rev.  David  Forrester  was  ordained  at  this  session 
to  the  office  of  a  pastor,  and  several  students  of 
theology  were  received  under  the  care  of  Synod. 

From  the  minutes  of  1829,  it  is  manifest  that 
the  Synod  was  extending  its  bounds  and  influence, 
and  through  the  labors  of  Rev.  Bonham,  Luther- 
anism  became  known  in  Habersham  and  Carroll 
Counties,  Georgia.     Rev.  John  L.  Morkert,  from 


488  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Ohio,  attached  himself  to  the  Synod,  and  Rev. 
John  'N.  Stirewalt  was  ordained  to  the  pastoral 
office.  A  vote  of  thanks  was  presented  to  Dr. 
Solomon  Henkel  "  for  his  extra  and  benevolent 
services  he  has  rendered  this  body  from  time  to 
time,  in  printing"  the  transactions,  &c.,  of  Synod. 

In  1831  the  Rev.  William  C.  Rankin,  a  licentiate 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  in  good  standing, 
as  seen  from  the  records  of  Union  Presbytery, 
East  Tennessee,  having  adopted  the  principles  of 
the  Lutheran  Church,  and  desiring  to  become  one 
of  its  ministers,  was  examined  by  a  committee,  and 
recommended  for  ordination.  "  He  was  first  admit- 
ted to  full  membership  of  the  Lutheran  Church  by 
the  rite  of  confirmation,  and  after  having  taken 
the  solemn  vows  of  a  minister,  he  was  ordained  as 
pastor  with  prayer  and  imposition  of  hands." 

The  same  day  Rev.  Henry  Goodman  was  or- 
dained as  deacon.  During  this  year,  on  the  15th 
of  June,  Rev.  David  Henkel  departed  this  life, 
aged  thirty-six  years,  one  month,  and  eleven  days. 
His  remains  were  interred  at  St.  John's  Church, 
Lincoln  County,  IST.  C.  As  a  youth  of  seventeen 
years  he  commenced  to  preach  the  gospel;  he 
delivered  his  first  sermon,  E'ovember  1,  1812,  at 
St.  Peter's  Church,  in  South  Carolina.  "He  was  a 
diligent  student,  and  searched  deep  into  the  truths 
of  divine  revelation."  He  was  the  author  of  nine 
difierent  publications,  the  most  of  which  are  of  a 
theoloo^ical  character.  He  was  asked  on  his  death- 
bed  whether  he  remained  steadfast  in  the  doctrine 
he  preached,  to  which  he  replied  in  the  affirmative, 


IN    NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  489 

and  that  he  had  no  fear  of  death.  "  His  last  words 
were :  '  0  Lord  Jesus — thou  Son  of  God — receive 
mj  spirit.'  "  He  left  a  wife  and  seven  children  to 
mourn  his  loss. 

During  the  years  1832  and  1833,  nothing  of  any 
special  interest  was  transacted  at  Sj^nod,  except 
the  ordination  of  Rev.  H.  Goodman  to  the  pastoral 
office,  and  the  withdrawal  of  Rev.  W..C.  Rankin 
from  Sj'nod;  whether  he  connected  himself  with 
some  other  ecclesiastical  hody  is  not  stated. 

Appended  to  the  minutes  there  is  an  obituary 
notice  of  Rev.  Philip  Henkel,  who  departed  this 
life  October  9th,  1833,  aged  fifty-four  years  and 
seventeen  days.  His  remains  were  interred  at 
Richland  Church,  Randolph  County,  K  C.  He 
was  one  of  the  first  founders  of  the  Lutheran  Ten- 
nessee Synod,  and  was  thirty-three  years  and  three 
months  in  the  ministerial  office. 


Section  9.  EstaUishment  of  a  Theological  Seminary 
in  South  Carolina^  under  the  Frofessorshij)  of 
Rev.  John  G.  Schwartz,  A.D.  1830. 

The  first  steps  taken  towards  the  establishment 
of  a  Theological  Seminary  by  the  South  Carolina 
Synod,  were  sundry  resolutions  passed  at  the  meet- 
ing of  Synod  held  in  Savannah,  Georgia,  Novem- 
ber 20th,  1829,  and  are  as  follows: 

"  The  several  resolutions  already  mentioned,  as 
having  reference  to  the  establishment  of  a  Theo- 
logical Seminarv,  within  the  bounds  of  this  Synod, 


490  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

were  now  taken  up,  and  after  mature  discussion, 
unanmousl}/  adopted. 

"  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  regard  the  establish- 
ment of  a  theological  seminary  under  the  auspices 
of  this  judicatory,  and  within  its  bounds,  as  highly 
calculated  to  advance  the  interests  of  our  Church, 
and  as  an  object  worth}^  of  attention. 

"•Resolved,  therefore,  That  we  direct  our  efforts 
forthwith  to  the  erection  of  a  fund,  to  be  hereafter 
devoted  to  the  establishment  and  support  of  such 
a  seminary. 

"Resolved,  also.  That  a  committee,  to  consist  of 
twenty,  be  now  appointed,  who  shall  be  authorized 
to  receive  any  donations  which  may  be  presented 
or  legacies  which  may  be  bequeathed  towards  the 
erection  of  such  a  fund. 

(Here  follow  the  names  of  the  members  of  that 
committee.) 

"  Resolved,  moreover.  That  this  committee  act 
"until  the  ensuing  session  of  this  Synod.  That  the 
chairman  of  the  committee  report  at  the  next  an- 
nual meeting,  whether  any  and  what  donations 
have  been  received,  and  that  a  similar  committee 
be  appointed  from  j^ear  to  year." 

The  next  year  fully  decided  the  fate  of  the  pro- 
posed institution.  The  President  of  the  Synod, 
Rev.  J.  Bach  man,  opened  the  subject  in  his  annual 
address  to  Synod,  as  follows: 

"  Althouii^h  bv  the  blessins:  of  God  our  Church 
under  the  direction  of  this  Synod  is  evidently  on 
the  increase,  yet  there  still  continues  a  lamentable 
want  of  ministers.     Our  congregations  are  enlarg- 


IN   NORTH   AND-  SOUTH   CAROLINA.  491 

iiig,  and  new  ones  are  forming  from  year  to  year, 
yet  the  number  of  our  ministers  is  not  propor- 
tionably  on  the  increase ;  and  such  are  the  calls 
for  their  services,  that  although  some  of  our  min- 
isters attend  to  from  four  to  seven  congregations, 
it  is  feared  that  there  will  be  some  churches  left 
but  very  partially  supplied  during  the  coming 
year.  There  are  also  petitions  from  Georgia  and 
Alabama  for  missionaries,  to  which  it  is  feared  we 
can  only  respond  by  our  wishes  and  our  prayers. 
"We  have  applied  to  our  sister  Synods  in  vain  for 
aid.  So  wide  a  sphere  is  opened  to  them  in  the 
North  and  West,  that  they  have  no  ministers  to 
send  us;  and  it  is  believed  that  our  only  perma- 
nent dependence,  under  the  blessing  of  God,  will 
be  upon  pious  individuals  who  will  hereafter  be 
educated  for  our  Church,  who  are  natives  of  the 
States  within  the  bounds  of  our  Synod,  and  who 
are  attached  to  our  institutions,  and  accustomed 
to  our  climate. 

"Let  us  bring  the  means  of  a  theological  edu- 
cation within  the  reach  of  our  pious  young  men, 
and  w^e  may  be  assured  that  they  will  profit  by 
these  advantages.  And  I  come  now  to  recom- 
mend with  all  the  earnestness  I  am  capable  of,  and 
imploring  Almighty  God  for  his  blessing  on  our 
humble  exertions,  the  institution  and  support  of 
a  Theological  Seminary.  Hitherto  I  have  had 
many  anxieties  on  this  subject,  and  great  doubts 
of  our  success.  I  feared  that  in  attempting  too 
much  we  might  entirely  fail.  But  Providence 
seems  to  have  removed  the  greatest  obstacles  to 


492  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

the  establishment  of  such  an  institution.  Our 
people  have  become  united  and  zealous  in  the 
cause,  and  evince  a  liberality  which,  until  now, 
we  had  no  reason  to  expect.  A  proposition  has 
emanated  from  them  to  subscribe  a  hundred  dol- 
lars each,  payable  in  four  and  five  years,  wiiich 
would  enable  persons  even  in  moderate  circum- 
stances to  render  their  efficient  aid  to  our  contem- 
plated institution.  The  success  in  obtaining  sub- 
scriptions, thus  far,  is  quite  encouraging.  The 
clergy  of  our  denomination,  although  in  most  in- 
stances they  receive  but  a  very  inadequate  sup- 
port, express  their  views  of  the  importance  of  such 
an  institution  to  our  Southern  Church  in  a  desire 
to  share  with  their  people  the  burden  of  expense. 
This  united  zeal  and  perseverance  will,  we  confi- 
dently hope,  enable  us  at  the  next  meeting  of  our 
Synod  to  report  that  ten  thousand  dollars  have 
been  pledged — a  sum  sufficient  to  enable  our  in- 
stitution to  go  into  successful  operation;  and  al- 
though it  would  have  but  an  humble  origin,  yet 
fostered  by  our  liberality,  our  watchfulness,  and 
our  sincere  and  fervent  prayers,  we  may,  under 
the  blessing  of  heaven,  look  forward  to  a  long 
train  of  signal  blessings  upon  our  Church." 

In  addition  to  this  address,  Rev.  Bachman  also 
brought  the  subject  before  Synod  in  his  discourse, 
which  is  likewise  appended  to  the  minutes  of  that 
year,  and  although  an  exceedingly  interesting 
document,  it  is  much  too  lengthy  to  be  inserted 
here.  It  had  the  good  eifect  of  awakening  the 
minds  of  the  people  generally  on  the  importance 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  493 

of  establishing  the  proposed  Theological  Semi- 
nary, and  it  accomplished  good  results  even  after 
the  adjoarnm.ent  of  Synod. 

The  chairman  of  the  committee  to  receive  dona- 
tions, &c.,  for  this  object,  reported  that  by  the  1st 
of  January  next,  "$3000  will  have  been  sub- 
scribed.^' 

The  Synod  then  adopted  the  following  series  of 
resolutions: 

"  Whereas y  The  committee  appointed  at  the  last 
meeting  of  this  Synod  for  the  purpose  of  raising 
a  fund  for  the  support  of  a  Theological  Seminary, 
have  made  considerable  progress  in  obtaining  con- 
tributions; and  whereas,  there  is  a  prospect  of 
having  a  sufficient  fund  collected  in  a  short  time; 

^'Besolued,  That  in  humble  reliance  on  the  Di- 
vine blessing,  we  now  establish  a  Theological  Semi- 
nary, to  be  conducted  under  the  auspices  of  this 
Synod,  and  that  we,  by  this  resolusion,  do  conse- 
crate our  eflbrts  to  Him,  who  is  the  great  Head  of 
the  Church,  the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  souls — 
God  over  all,  blessed  forever. 

"  liesobed,  That  as  a  course  of  preparatory  study 
may  be  necessary  for  many  theological  students, 
and  in  order  to  the  defraying  of  the  expenses  of 
a  Theological  Institution,  we  have  connected  with 
it  a  classical  academy,  under  the  superintendence 
of  the  Professor  of  Theology,  and  that  this  acad- 
emy be  open  to  all  males  over  ten  years  of  age." 

The  other  resolutions  refer  to  the  appointment 
of  a  board  of  ten  directors,  the  election  of  a  treas- 
urer, when  the  board  is  to  be  elected,  the  election 
of  a  Professor  of  Theology,  &c. 


494  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

"Mr.  Henry  Muller  was  elected  Treasurer,  and 
the  Eev.  J.  G.  Schwartz  was  unanimously  chosen 
Professor  of  Theology." 

Concerning  Rev.  Schwartz's  election,  and  his 
fitness  for  the  office.  Rev.  Bachman  says: 

"It  was  necessary  that  a  professor  to  the  insti- 
tution should  be  elected,  and  that  he  should  enter 
at  once  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties.  Every 
eye  among  the  clergy  and  laity  was  immediately 
directed  to  Mr.  Schwartz.  Tliey  knew  his  educa- 
tion, his  talents  and  piety.  Although  but  twenty- 
three  years  of  age,  he  had  made  the  best  use  of 
his  short  life.  There  were  few  better  Greek  and 
Latin  scholars  in  our  country;  he  had  attended 
considerably  to  the  Hebrew  language;  he  was 
proficient  in  the  French,  and  he  was  studiously 
directing  his  attention  to  the  Germ'an,  and  read 
and  translated  that  language  with  considerable 
ease.  He  had  made  an  equal  proficiency  in  the 
other  sciences.  In  theology  he  was  probably  as 
well  read  as  any  young  man  of  his  age.  He  had 
attentively  read  all  the  most  important  writings 
on  the  subject;  and  although  he  preferred  the  doc- 
trines of  our  Church  to  all  others,  yet  his  soul  was 
the  seat  of  Christian  liberality,  and  it  should  be 
spoken  to  his  praise,  that  although  surrounded  by 
Christians  of  other  denominations,  yet  he  never 
gave  them  oftence,  and  they  generally  attended 
with  satisfaction  and  improvement  on  his  minis- 
trations. The  objections  to  his  youth  were  every 
day  removing.  He  received  a  unanimous  vote  as 
Professor  of  Theology.     After  the  election  there 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  495 

was  a  pause  of  many  minutes,  when  lie  arose  to 
address  us.  For  a  time  his  feelings  almost  pre- 
vented the  power  of  utterance.  He  at  length  pro- 
ceeded to  thank  us  for  our  favorable  opinion ; 
stated  his  sense  of  his  incapacity  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  the  station  to  which  he  had  been  ap- 
pointed; pointed  out  its  difficulties,  but  signified 
his  willingness  to  undertake  it  by  the  help  of  God, 
and  entreated  our  prayers  and  intercessions,  and 
those  of  all  Christians  in  his  behalf.  The  youth 
of  the  individual — the  occasion — the  importance 
of  the  subject,  and  the  feeling  and  eloquent  ad- 
dress, melted  the  whole  audience  into  tears,  and  I 
am  sure  that  few  who  were  then  present  will  ever 
forget  that  impressive  scene.  • 

"He  had  entered  the  Junior  Class  of  the  South 
Carolina  College  in  the  autumn  of  1824,  and  gradu- 
ated in  1826,  having  throughout  his  collegiate 
course  conducted  himself  with  such  propriety, 
that  he  was  greatly  beloved  by  the  members  of 
his  class.  He  received  a  high  honor  when  he 
graduated,  and  a  letter  from  one  of  the  professors 
stated — 'He  is  not  only  among  the  best  scholars, 
but  one  of  the  very  best  young  men  that  graduated 
here  for  many  years  past.'  " 

The  permanent  location  of  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary was  postponed  to  some  future  time;  how- 
ever, as  Professor  Schwartz  had  taken  charge  of 
several  congregations  in  dewberry  District,  which 
he  was  unwilling  to  resign  until  another  year  had 
expired,  he  gave  notice  "  that  for  the  year  1831 
his  residence  will  be  in  Newberry  District,  with 


496  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Colonel  John  Eigleberger,  about  ten  miles  below 
jN'ewberry  Court-house,  and  that  he  will  be  pre- 
pared, by  the  first  Monday  in  February,  to  receive 
as  theological  students  such  persons,  as  shall  have 
been  approved  by  the  standing  committee  of  the 
Board  of  Directors. 

"Boarding,  inclusive  of  washing,  &c.,  will  be 
furnished  at  seventy  dollars  per  annum." 

The  Seminary  of  Theology  opened  with  very 
flattering  prospects;  so  many  students  became 
connected  with  it,  that  Professor  Schwartz  ex- 
pressed his  fears  in  a  letter  to  Kev.  J.  Bachman, 
that  if  many  more  would  come,  they  could  not  be 
accommodated :  and  of  their  character  he  further 
states:  "All  the  young  men  now  with  me  are 
promising — and  if  their  hearts  be  right  in  the 
sight  of  God,  I  have  no  doubt  they  will  prove  a 
blessing  to  our  Church.  The  heart  is  known, 
however,  only  to  God — we  can  judge  ou]y  by  the 
outward  appearance;  but  did  I  think  that  any  of 
these  students  were  deficient  in  proper  views  of 
religion  and  of  the  ministerial  ofiice,  I  should  feel 
it  my  bounden  duty  to  advise  them  at  once  not  to 
enter  this  institution.  I  dread  the  idea  of  being 
instrumental  in  educating  any  one  for  the  holy 
office  of  the  ministrj^,  who  through  a  want  of  per- 
sonal religion  may  bring  disgrace  upon  our  sacred 
calling." 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  497 

Section  10.  Neio  Churches  erected  in  South  Carolina; 
and  the  early  death  of  Bevs.  Wingard,  Schwartz, 
Bergman,  and  Daniel  Dreher. 

1.  3lount  Calvary  Church,  Edgefield  District,  was 
dedicated  by  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Schwartz  and  W. 
D.  Strobel,  on  the  21st  of  February,  1830.  The 
congregation  at  that  time  numbered  twenty-four 
communicants. 

2.  Si.  Paid's,  a  fine  new  church  in  I^Tewberry 
District,  was  dedicated  on  the  third  Sunday  in 
June,  1830,  by  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Ranch  and 
Schwartz.  A  revived  state  of  religion  had  been 
visible  for  some  time  past,  and  soon  after  the 
dedication  of  the  church  thirty-seven  persons  were 
added  at  one  time  by  confirmation. 

3  Shlloh  Church,  in  the  fork  of  the  two  Edisto 
Rivers,  and  in  the  neighborhood  of  Mr.  Branden- 
buro-,  was  completed  this  year,  and  on  the  second 
Sabbath  in  January,  1831,  it  was  dedicated  ;  it  con- 
tained at  the  time  a  membership  of  but  fifteen  com- 
municants. 

4.  Ehenezer  Church,  in  the  city  of  Columbia,  a 
neat  brick  edifice,  located  in  an  extensive  lot,  with 
an  ample  God's-acre  for  the  repose  of  the  dead, 
was  completed  this  year,  and  dedicated  the  28th 
of  November,  1830.  This  congregation  was  gath- 
ered  too:ether  and  organized  by  Rev.  Jacob  AV  m- 
crard,  who  manifested  great  zeal  and  good  manage- 
ment in  this  laudable  enterprise.  The  congregation 
beino-  small,  and  the  membership  generally  m  lim- 


42 


498  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ited  circumstances,  the  church  edifice  was  erected 
principally  through  the  munificence  of  Mr.  Henry 
Muller,  Sr.,  of  Piatt  Springs,  Lexington  District, 
S.  C.  In  Februar}^,  1865,  it  became  a  prey  to  the 
flames  of  the  burning  of  Columbia  by  the  JSTorthern 
army,  under  General  Sherman;  but  has  since  been 
rebuilt  by  funds,  donated  partly  by  Lutheran  con- 
gregations and  individuals  at  the  Korth. 

Si.  Stephen's  Church,  at  Lexington  Court-house, 
a  frame  building,  with  ample  accommodations, 
was  erected  this  year,  but  not  completed  until  the 
fall  of  1831,  when  on  the  fifth  Sunday  in  October 
it  was  dedicated  to  the  service  of  Almighty  God. 
Being  located  in  a  town  where  the  Lutheran  ele- 
ment largely  predominates,  it  has  the  prospect  of 
becoming  a  flourishing  church.  It  was  likewise 
burnt  down  during  the  late  war. 

6.  During  the  year  1831,  "  the  Church  in  the 
Sandhills  was  also  dedicated." 

7.  "  The  Church  at  Hollow  Creek  is  said  to  be 
nearl}^  completed,  and  will  be  opened  for  worship 
in  the  course  of  a  month." 

8.  ^'A  new  church  in  Barnwell  District,  near 
the  Saltketchers,  is  also  being  erected,  and  is  in  a 
considerable  state  of  forwardness." 

The  above  are  quotations  from  the  president's 
report  to  Synod  in  1831. 

God  was  visibly  blessing  the  South  Carolina 
Synod  in  enlarging  its  sphere  of  influence  and 
usefulness,  in  the  increase  of  its  members  and  con- 
gregations; bat  there  is  also  a  shad}^  side  to  that 
picture — God  visited  the  Synod  by  the  removal  of 


IN  NOHTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  499 

a  number  of  useful  ministers  of  the  Gospel  by  the 
strong  hand  of  death  ;  the}^  were  taken  away  when 
yet  in  their  years  of  youthful  strength  and  vigor, 
when  the  Church  had  centred  great  hopes  in  them, 
and  they  gave  promise  of  a  long  life  of  service  in 
the  Lord's  vineyard. 

Eev.  Jacob  Wingard  was  the  son  of  Samuel 
Wingard,  and  a  young  man  of  much  promise;  of 
him  the  Kev.  J.  Bachman,  President  of  Synod, 
remarks  in  his  report  of  1831 :  "  Mr.  Wingard  had 
but  recently  returned  from  the  Theological  Institu- 
tion at  Gettysburg,  where  he  had  been  highly  re- 
spected for  his  talents,  his  piety,  and  worth.  But 
his  friends  beheld  with  anxiety  and  sorrow  that 
his  constitution,  which  had  never  been  strong,  had 
been  attacked  by  an  insidious  disease;  but  trust- 
ing to  that  heavenly  physician,  who  is  able  to  re- 
store health  and  vigor  to  the  diseased  frame  and 
cheer  the  drooping  hopes  of  man,  we  still  looked 
forward  to  the  time  when  his  recovery  would  re- 
store him  to  usefulness  in  the  Church,  and  by  our 
advice  he  was  solemnly  ordained  and  set  apart  to 
the  work  of  the  ministry.  But  on  the  14th  day  of 
January  last,  the  God  whom  he  loved  to  serve,  and 
in  whose  cause  he  had  spent  the  whole  of  his  short 
life,  summoned  him  away.  Mr.  Wingard  was  a 
young  man  of  uncommon  attainments,  considering 
the  disadvantages  under  which  he  had  labored  in 
his  youth,  for  the  want  of  a  systematic  education. 
He  was  in  most  cases  his  own  instructor ;  every 
leisure  hour  that  could  be  spared  from  those  occu- 
pations in  which  he  was  necessarily  engaged  was 


500  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

devoted  to  books ;  and  all  his  reading  and  study 
had  for  its  object  the  promotion  of  his  Savior's  re- 
ligion. For  this  object  he  left  his  peaceful  home, 
and  devoted  himself  to  solitude  and  study  in  a 
distant  part  of  our  land.  Here  he  was  attacked 
by  a  disease,  which  he  bore  with  Christian  resig- 
nation. When  he  was  summoned  away,  he  ap- 
peared still  at  the  post  of  duty,  and  meekly  re- 
signed himself  to  the  will  of  God,  trusting  through 
the  mercy  of  his  Savior  for  the  salvation  of  his 
soul,  and  the  joys  of  heaven." 

With  Rev.  Prof  John  G.  Schwartz  the  reader 
is  already  well  acquainted.  He  commenced  his 
labors  as  the  first  regular  Professor  of  Theology  in 
connection  with  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Caro- 
linas,  early  in  February,  1831,  under  the  most 
flattering  prospects,  and  with  the  high  hopes  of 
the  Church  centred  upon  him ;  but  these  hopes 
were  destined  to  a  speedy  disappointment;  in  less 
than  seven  months  Prof.  Schwartz  was  numbered 
with  the  dead. 

The  following  brief  sketch  of  his  life  is  fur- 
nished by  Rev.  Dr.  Hazelius  in  his  "American 
L uth eran  C h  u  rch : ' ' 

''The  Rev.  John  G.  Schwartz  was  born  in 
Charleston,  S.  C,  in  the  year  1807,  where  he  also 
received  the  preliminary  part  of  his  education. 
Afterwards  he  became  an  alumnus  of  the  South 
Carolina  College,  at  Columbia,  where  he  gradu- 
ated with  distinguished  honor  in  December,  1826. 
On  his  return  to  Charleston  he  commenced  the 
study  of  theology  under  the  direction  of  the  Rev. 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  501 

Mr.  Bachmaii.  In  1828  lie  was  elected  Junior 
Professor  of  Languages  in  the  Charleston  College. 
But  desirous  of  serving  the  Lord  as  a  minister  of 
the  Gospel,  he  freely  surrendered  his  present  ad- 
vantages, as  well  as  his  fair  temporal  prospects  of 
the  future,  and  engaged  as  a  missionary  among 
the  destitute  churches  in  the  interior  of  South 
Carolina. 

"His  labors  were  eminently  blessed,  and  our 
brother  enjoyed  the  full  confidence  of  the  mem- 
bers of  his  churches.  But  his  career  was  to  be 
short;  for  wise  purposes,  to  us  unknown,  the  Lord 
called  his  young  servant  away  in  the  midst  of 
his  useful  labors.  In  the  summer  of  1831  he  was 
seized  with  a  violent  fever,  which  at  first  appear- 
ance seemed  to  yield  to  the  iniluence  of  medicine, 
but  returning  with  increased  severity,  put  relief 
beyond  the  power  of  human  means,  and  on  the 
26th  of  August  it  terminated  his  valuable  life, 
having  just  Wched  the  24th  year  of  his  age." 

From  a  funeral  discourse,  occasioned  by  the 
death  of  Rev.  J.  G.  Schwartz,  and  delivered  by 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Bachman,  the  following  testimony 
of  the  character  and  worth  of  Prof.  Schwartz  is 

obtained : 

"  Should  it  be  asked  what  was  the  peculiar  trait 
in  the  character  of  Mr.  Schwartz,  I  would  say  that 
it  was  a  solemn  determination  conscientiously  to 
discharge  his  duty  to  his  God.  For  this  he  left 
his  peaceful  home  and  the  friends  of  his  youth, 
and  retired  into  a  sickly  part  of  our  county;  and 
from  thence  he  wrote:    ^lere  in  the  woods  of 


502  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

Carolina  I  suspect  my  lot  is  cast — here  I  shall  live, 
and  here  I  shall  die.  To  be  instrumental  in  doing 
good  and  enlarging  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  is 
all  I  ask.' 

"That  a  man  who  was  so  devoted  to  the  duties 
of  the  Christian  should  possess  the  amiable  graces 
of  benevolence,  we  cannot  wonder.  He  felt  it  his 
duty  to  exert  all  his  powers  to  do  good  to  the 
bodies  and  souls  of  men.  The  great  maxim,  no 
man  liveth  to  himself,  was  engraven  on  his  mind. 
Without  profession  or  show,  he  engaged  in  and 
ardently  devoted  himself  to  every  work  of  benevo- 
lence. 

"The  shock  given  to  the  people  among  whom 
he  lived  by  this  event  was  unusual,  and  the  calam- 
ity was  heightened  by  its  bereaving  them  of  their 
fondest  hopes.  A  gentleman  who  attended  the 
funeral  writes:  ^^o  tongue  can  express,  no  pen 
can  describe  the  feelings  of  the  people  on  this 
melancholy  occasion.  The  remains  of  our  dearly 
beloved  friend  were  interred  this  mornins^  in  Beth- 
lehem  churchyard;  the  largest  concourse  of  people 
that  were  ever  assembled  in  this  country  attended 
the  funeral.  The  sad  looks,  the  loud  sobs  and  the 
tears  shed  on  this  mournful  occasion,  amply  testi- 
fied the  high  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  by  all, 
rich  and  poor,  old  and  young,  white  and  black — 
pardon  me  for  introducing  the  word  black,  but  I 
must  say,  that  even  the  poor  Africans  sympathized 
and  sorrowed,  saying,  "Dear  Mr.  Schwartz." - 
Three  of  the  ministers  of  our  Church  officiated  at 
his  funeral,  and  all  bore  testimony,  that  never  had 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  503 

an  individual  departed  in  that  community  who 
was  more  beloved,  or  whose  loss  was  more  sin- 
cerely lamented  than  was  that  of  our  departed 
friend." 

The  next  victim  in  the  ministerial  ranks  of  the 
South  Carolina  Synod,  which  death  claimed  as  his 
own,  was  the  Kev.  C.  F.  Bergman,  who,  though 
laboring  in  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  was  ordained  by, 
and  labored  in  connection  with,  the  South  Caro- 
lina Synod,  and  maintained  his  official  relationship 
with  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas  to  the 
close  of  his  life.  It  is  therefore  proper  that  an 
account  of  his  life,  labors  and  death  be  here  in- 
serted, which  is  furnished  by  Rev.  S.  A.  Mealy  in 
his  funeral  discourse,  preached  to  Eev.  Bergman's 
congregation  at  Ebenezer,  occasioned  by  the  death 
of  their  beloved  pastor: 

"The  Rev.  Christopher  F.  Bergman  was  born 
at  Ebenezer,  Georgia,  on  the  7tli  of  January, 
1793.  His  father,  the  Rev.  John  E.  Bergman,  a 
native  of  Germany,  and  the  learned  and  exem- 
plar}^ minister  of  this  church  for  the  long  period 
of  thirty-six  years,  had  the  exclusive  care  of  the 
education  of  the  subject  of  our  present  recollec- 
tions. He  may,  indeed,  with  the  utmost  truth, 
be  said  to  have  been  trained  up  from  youth  to 
manhood  in  his  own  father's  study. 

"The  general  deportment  of  our  friend  was 
grave,  and  his  very  appearance  forbade  the  rude 
approach  of  impertinent  curiosity.  One  who  saw 
him  for  the  first  time,  would  have  thought  him, 
perhaps,  inaccessible  and  austere.     But  the  same 


504  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

individual,  upon  a  closer  acquaintance,  would 
have  perceived  his  error,  and  found  himself  in 
the  presence  of  gravity  indeed,  but  a  gravity  most 
delicately  softened  by  every  generous  virtue  and 
amiable  emotion.  His  outward  bearing  to  others 
was  affable,  but  unobtrusive.  He  was  almost  al- 
ways cheerful,  but  never  trifling.  I  have  often 
seen  his  countenance  lighted  up  with  a  smile 
among  his  friends,  but  distorted  with  laughter, 
never.  His  feelings,  though  cautious  in  their  dis- 
play, were  constitutionally  warm;  and  his  affec- 
tion for  those  whom  he  loved,  ardent.  In  all  the 
social  relations  of  life,  as  a  man — as  a  citizen — a 
husband — a  parent — a  master — a  neighbor,  and  a 
friend — those  who  best  knew  him  will  bear  me 
out  in  the  assertion  that  he  reflected  honor  upon 
the  age  in  which  he  lived,  and  may  be  safelj^  imi- 
tated, without  any  qualification  whatsoever,  by 
those  whom  he  has  left  behind  him. 

"And  what  he  was  to  this  people,  as  the  affec- 
tionate pastor,  there  are  none  of  you  will  ever  for- 
get. How  this  'good  man,  who  was  over  you  in 
the  Lord,'  preached  to  you — how  he  consoled  you 
in  the  hour  of  sorrow — how  he  dried  your  tears  in 
the  season  of  affliction — how  he  prayed  beside 
your  sick-beds — how  sincereh'  he  loved  you,  and 
how  faithfully  he  admonished  you — is  well  known 
to  all  of  this  congregation,  and  shall  be  known  to 
assembled  worlds  in  the  great  day  of  judgment, 
when  pastors  and  their  charges  shall  meet  again. 

"I  inquired  whether,  if  it  was  the  Divine  will, 
he  would  not  wish  to  be  spared  a  little  longer  to 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  505 

his  dear  family  and  congregation.  He  said  noth- 
ing for  a  considerable  space,  till  I  began  to  think 
he  had  not  heard  my  question.  At  length  he  re- 
plied, 'If  it  is  the  divine  will,  I  would  rather  go 
now.  I  feel  that  for  me  to  depart  and  to  be  with 
Christ  is  far  better.  I  think  I  can  truly  say,  *'for 
me  to  live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain."'  I  ob- 
served, '  Then  you  are  not  afraid  to  die?'  He  said, 
'No!'  '  You  have  no  doubts  of  your  acceptance 
with  God,  through  our  great  Mediator?'  He  re- 
plied, 'None.  Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of 
my  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  I  have  no  doubts.' 

"While  I  was  engaged  in  prayer,  he  held  one 
of  my  hands  clasped  in  both  his  own,  and  distinctly 
though  feebly  repeated  almost  every  word  after 
me,  and  concluded  the  prayer  for  me  with  the 
usual  Amen.  He  then  lay  composed  for  some 
time,  when  at  length  he  warmly  pressed  my  hand 
and  said,  louder  than  he  had  yet  spoken,  'Fare- 
well.'    He  now  repeated  that  triumphant  hymn, 

'  Cease,  fond  nature,  cease  thy  strife, 
And  let  me  languish  into  life.' 

"These  were  among  the  last  words  he  used. 
At  a  quarter  before  three,  a.m.,  on  the  26th  of 
March,  1832,  he  ceased  to  breathe,  and  was  gath- 
ered to  his  rest  in  peace." 

On  the  14th  of  August,  18eS2,  God  called  another 
young  laborer  to  his  early  rest.  Of  him.  Dr.  Ha- 
zelius  writes: 

"The  Rev.  Daniel  Dreher,  son  of  Mr.  John 
Dreher,  of  Lexington  District,  enjoyed  the  advan- 

43 


506  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

tages  of  the  advice  and  instruction  of  pious  parents 
during  his  childhood  and  years  of  his  youth,  and 
by  that  instrumentality  the  Lord  directed  him 
early  to  the  knowledge  of  his  sinful  nature,  the 
need  of  a  Savior,  and  to  Jesus,  the  friend  of  re- 
penting sinners,  whose  merits  he  embraced, 
through  faith  in  application  to  his  own  soul. 
Having  found  Jesus  precious,  and  the  rock  on 
which  he  had  built  the  house  of  his  hope,  he  be- 
came-anxious  to  recommend  him  also  unto  others. 
Having  given  some  attention  to  the  study  of  di- 
vinity under  the  direction  of  his  elder  brother, 
the  Eev.  Godfrey  Dreher,  he  was  received  by 
Synod  as  licentiate.  He  w^as  an  acceptable  and 
zealous  preacher,  and  his  remembrance  is  cher- 
ished by  all  who  enjoyed  his  acquaintance.  He 
departed  in  hope  of  eternal  life." 

Thus  was  the  Synod  of  South  Carolina  sorely 
smitten  at  that  time,  and  the  Church  bereft  of 
some  of  its  most  promising  laborers.  In  view  of 
these  severe  afflictions,  the  President  of  Synod, 
Rev.  John  Bachman,  in  his  address  to  Synod,  thus 
expresses  himself: 

"Let  our  past  afflictions  teach  us  humility,  an 
increase  of  zeal  and  an  humble  trust  and  confi- 
dence in  the  protection  and  mercy  of  God ;  and  as 
the  hour  of  the  night  is  darkest  which  precedes 
the  rising  morn,  and  as  the  day  is  often  calmest 
which  succeeds  the  violence  of  the  tempest,  so 
these  visitations  of  heaven,  like  the  calamities 
which  befell  the  Church  of  old,  may  be  followed 
by  a  long  train  of  mercies  and  blessings  to  our 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  507 

beloved  Zion.  But  whilst  we  ve\y  for  future  suc- 
cess and  prosperity  on  the  blessings  of  heaven,  let 
us  in  the  meantime  do  all  that  lies  in  our  power 
to  promote  its  best  interests." 


Section  11.  Founding  of  the  Theological  Seminary  at 
Lexington^  S.  C,  and  Arrival  of  Bev.  E.  L. 
HazeliuSj  D.D.,  as  Professor  of  Iheology. 

The  fund  necessary  for  the  endowment  of  a 
professorship  in  the  Theological  Seminary  was 
constantly  increasing,  and  at  the  meeting  of  the 
South  Carolina  Synod  of  1831,  "liberal  offers  were 
made  by  several  persons  for  the  location  of  the 
Seminary  in  their  respective  neighborhoods. 

"After  much  interesting  discussion  had  been 
elicited,  in  which  several,  both  of  the  clerical  and 
lay  members,  took  an  animated  part,  the  following 
resolutions  were  finallj^  adopted: 

"  Resolved^  That  the  location  of  our  Theological 
Seminary  be  deferred  till  the  next  meeting  of 
Synod;  and  that  during  the  recess  of  the  Synod 
the  Board  of  Directors  ascertain  which  of  any  two 
places  selected  will  hold  out  the  greatest  induce- 
ments for  the  establishment  of  our  Seminary  in 
that  place. 

''^Resolved,  That  Lexington  Village  and  Sandy 
Run,  the  latter  comprising  a  circuit  of  from  one 
to  two  miles  from  the  church,  be  the  places  desig- 
nated in  the  above  resolution." 

At  the  next  meeting  of  Synod,  held  in  St.  Mat- 


508  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

thew's  Church,  Orangeburg  District,  the  question 
of  locating  the  Seminary  was  finallj'  disposed  of 
by  the  reading  of  the  proposals  made  by  the 
above-mentioned  two  places,  which  were  as  fol- 
lows: 

''  Lexington  Village,  in  money  and  other  property,  $5287 
Sandy  Run,  "  "  4000 

Excess  in  favor  of  Lexington  Village,  .         .         .  $1287  " 

And  the  passing  of  the  following  resolutioi] : 

'''Resolved^  That  since  Lexington  Village  holds 
out  the  greatest  inducements,  our  Theological 
Seminary  shall  be  located  in  that  place." 
In  reference  to  the  Seminary,  it  was  also 
"  Resolved,  That  the  sincere  thanks  of  this  Synod 
be  returned  to  our  friends  and  the  members  of  our 
Church  for  their  very  generous  subscriptions  to 
our  Theological  Seminary. 

'''Resolved,  That  it  be  enjoined  on  all  our  min- 
isters to  bring  the  subject  of  our  Theological 
Seminary  to  the  view  of  their  respective  congre- 
gations, and  to  impress  upon  them  the  necessity 
of  using  their  most  strenuous  exertions  to  promote 
its  best  interests. 

''Resolved,  That  the  Rev.  Godfrey  Dreher  and 
Mr.  Henry  Muller  be  appointed  by  this  Synod  as 
their  agents,  to  solicit  donations  and  subscriptions 
to  our  Theological  Seminary,  and  that  they  report 
to  this  Synod  at  its  next  meeting." 

Mrs.  Mariana  Chisolm,  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  pre- 
sented to  the  Synod,  for  the  use  of  the  Seminary, 
a  large  Bible  and  hymnbook,  "accompanied  with 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  509 

her  earnest  prayer  that  the  institution  may  be  in- 
strumental in  furnishing  the  now  destitute  churches 
with  many  pious  and  able  ministers  of  the  Lu- 
theran faith."     Whereupon  the  Synod 

"  B.e solved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  Synod  be  re- 
turned to  Mrs.  Mariana  Chisolm  for  her  very  ac- 
ceptable present  of  a  valuable  Bible  and  Lutheran 
hymn  and  prayer  book  for  the  use  of  our  Semi- 
nary." 

During  the  year  1833  the  necessary  buildings 
w^ere  erected  near  Lexington  Court-House,  both 
for  recitation  rooms  and  a  dwelling  for  the  theo- 
logical Professor;  and  at  the  same  time  the  Board 
of  Directors  elected  Rev.  Dr.  E.  L.  Hazelius,  of 
Gettysburg,  Pennsylvania,  Professor  of  Theology; 
and  the  Rev.  Washington  Muller,  a  graduate  of 
South  Carolina  College,  Principal  of  the  Classical 
Academy. 

Rev.  Dr.  Hazelius  was  a  native  of  Silesia,  in  the 
kingdom  of  Prussia  ;  in  early  life  he  was  connected 
with  the  Moravian  Church ;  and,  having  "  received 
his  collegiate  education  in  Saxony  and  Prussia,  he 
subsequently  graduated  in  the  Moravian  Theologi- 
cal Seminary  at  Niesky,  in  1797.  He  arrived  in 
America  in  1800,"  and  was  for  a  time  the  classical 
teacher  at  ^Nazareth,  Pennsylvania,  a  Moravian 
institution  of  learning,  where  one  of  his  pupils 
was  the  future  Bishop  Yan  Yleck.  In  1809  he 
was  ordained  by  the  ITew  York  Ministerium  a 
minister  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  In  1815  he 
was  elected  Professor  of  Theology  at  Ilartwick 
Seminary,   New  York,  "  where   he   remained   a 


510  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

faithful  and  successful  instructor  until  1830,  when 
he  removed  to  Gettysburg  Seminary,"  as  one  of 
its  professors. 

In  the  fall  of  1833,  he  became  located  at  Lexing- 
ton, S.  C,  where  he  remained  in  the  service  of  his 
Master  for  nearly  twenty  years,  to  the  close  of  his 
life. 

In  the  sj^nodical  address  of  Rev.  J.  Bachman, 
he  was  kindly  and  heartily  welcomed  as  Professor 
of  Theology  and  as  a  member  of  the  South  Caro- 
lina Synod  in  the  following  terms : 

"  It  is  a  source  of  no  small  gratification  to  me  to 
be  permitted  to  welcome  among  us  our  brother 
and  friend,  the  recently  elected  Professor  of  The- 
ology in  our  Seminar3^  He  has  come,  we  hope 
and  believe,  to  spend  the  remainder  of  an  active 
and  a  useful  life  in  the  midst  of  us.  He  has 
brought  along  with  him  those  talents  which  God 
gave  him — that  learning  wdiich  a  life  devoted  to 
study  has  enabled  him  to  acquire — and  that  expe- 
rience, zeal,  and  fidelity  wdiich  caused  him  to  be 
respected,  and  rendered  him  eminently  useful,  in 
all  those  valuable  institutions  over  which  he  was 
heretofore  called  to  preside.  His  unanimous  elec- 
tion to  this  responsible  office — the  pleasure  which 
we  all  felt  on  hearing  of  his  acceptance  of  the  ap- 
pointment— the  sacrifices  he  has  made  to  come 
among  us — are  all  so  many  loud  calls  upon  us  to 
perform  our  part  of  the  contract  with  liberal  and 
cheerful  hearts.  Let  us  co-operate  w^ith  him  in 
all  those  regulations  which  are  calculated  to  pro- 
mote the  best  interests  of  the  institution,  and  let 


TN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  511 

lis  give  to  that  institution  our  united  efforts  and 
our  fervent  prayers." 

Both  the  Theological  Seminary  and  the  Clas- 
sical Academy  went  into  operation  on  the  first 
Monday  of  January,  1834,  and  both  commenced 
with  very  favorable  prospects;  a  number  of  young 
men  enrolled  themselves  as  students  of  theology, 
whilst  the  local  and  other  patrons  of  the  classical 
department  were  quite  numerous. 

In  the  inaugural  address  of  Rev.  Dr.  Hazelius, 
in  which  he  impresses  his  audience  with  the  ne- 
cessity of  a  theological  training  for  ministers  of 
the  gospel,  the  following  are  the  closing  remarks  : 
"Brethren!  Benefactors  of  this  institution!  I  am 
aware  3^our  satisfaction  at  the  success  which  has 
crowned  your  efforts,  your  labors,  and  your  ex- 
pense, is  great,  and  you  regret  not  having  at- 
tempted, though  few  in  number,  what  in  other 
sections  of  our  country,  large  legacies,  the  contri- 
butions of  strangers,  and  the  united  efforts  of  sev- 
eral Synods  only  could  accomplish.  To  you  the 
Lutheran  Church  of  South  Carolina  and  the  adja- 
cent States  is  largely  indebted;  and  though  no 
monuments  of  marble  may  hereafter  point  out  to 
posterity  what  you  have  done  for  the  Church, 
your  latest  posterity  will  bless  your  memory,  and 
the  Searcher  of  the  heart  will  reward  you. 

"  We  have  the  proud  consciousness  of  knowing 
that  we  all  have  entertained  and  do  now  entertain 
no  other  view,  no  other  aim  in  the  establishment 
of  this  Seminary  than  the  enlargement  of  the  Re- 
deemer's kingdom,  and  there  is  no  doubt,  if  our 


512  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

institutions  remain  faithful  to  this  principle,  and 
faithful  in  the  application  of  the  means  intrusted 
to  us  b}^  our  brethren  for  the  benefit  of  the  Semi- 
nary, and  also  in  the  instruction  of  our  young 
brethren,  if  we  never  stoop  to  mean  intrigue  and 
management,  but  act  with  a  single  eye  to  the 
glory  of  God,  and  with  candor  towards  man,  the 
blessing  of  Almighty  God  will  accompany  this 
institution;  it  will  prove  a  benefit  to  the  Church, 
and  its  blessings  will  descend  to  the  latest  genera- 
tions." 


CHAPTER  VI. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  LUTHERAN  CHURCH  IN  THE  CARO- 
LINAS  CONTINUED,  TO  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE  YEAR 
1850. 

Section  1.  Condition  of  the  Lutheran  Chu7x-h  in  North 
and  South  Carolina  in  1834. 

During  the  three  years  which  intervened  be- 
tween 1831  and  1834,  very  few  changes  occurred 
in  the  ^orth  Carolina  Synod;  the  liev.  John  T. 
Tabler,  a  student  from  Gettysburg,  became  con- 
nected with  the  Synod,  and  labored  as  pastor  in 
Salisburj',  but  he  remained  there  only  one  year, 
after  which  he  removed  to  Virginia. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  613 

In  1832,  the  Rev.  Henry  Graeber  resigned  his 
charge  in  Lincohi  County,  and  became  the  pastor 
of  St.  John's  and  Organ  Churches,  which  had  be- 
come vacant  by  the  removal  of  Revs.  D.  Scherer 
and  J.  Kaempfer.  In  1833,  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Rothrock,  having  completed  his  studies  at  Gettys- 
burg, returned  to  ^N'orth  Carolina,  was  licensed  by 
Synod,  and  labored  as  missionary  in  several  vacant 
churches  for  a  short  time,  after  which  he  became 
the  pastor  of  Salisbury  and  Union  Churches.  The 
following  year  the  Rev.  Daniel  Jenkins  became 
connected  with  the  North  Carolina  Synod ;  he 
came  from  "  the  State  of  Maryland,  about  the  be- 
ginning of  November,  1833,  and  expressing  a  de- 
sire to  serve  our  Church  in  this  Southern  section 
as  a  missionary,''  was  licensed  by  the  President  of 
Synod  "  to  preach  in  our  destitute  churches  until 
the  next  session  of  the  Ministerium." 

The  congregations  in  Lincoln  County,  having 
had  no  regular  pastor  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
since  the  removal  of  Rev.  Graeber  from  their 
midst,  and  having  been  only  occasionally  visited 
by  missionaries  and  other  members  of  Synod,  be- 
came eventually  connected  with  the  Tennessee 
Synod. 

Concerning  the  state  of  the  Church  in  1834,  the 
President  of  Synod  reports:  "The  events  of  the 
past  synodical  year  have  become,  in  some  measure, 
more  encouraging  than  they  have  been  for  several 
years  before.  Those  churches  in  our  connection 
that  could  be  regularly  supplied,  had  not  oidy 
a  considerable  increase  since  our  last  annual  meet- 


514  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

ing,  but  are  also  generally  in  a  prosperous  condi- 
tion. The  gospel  has  been  faithfully  preached, 
and  the  holy  ordinances  regularly  administered. 
There  are  still  a  goodly  number  of  small  but  re- 
spectable congregations  that  are  vacant,  which,  if 
they  could  be  supplied  with  ministers,  would  add 
considerable  strength  to  this  weak  but  evangelical 
member  of  the  Lutheran  household  of  faith. 
Prospects  have  also  appeared  during  the  last 
year,  of  forming  several  new  congregations." 

During  the  year  1834  the  Tennessee  Synod  had 
no  meeting,  caused  by  the  absence  of  so  many 
ministers.  The  next  year  the  Synod  met  at  Blue 
Spring  Church,  Green  County,  Tennessee,  at 
which  meeting  the  Rev.  William  Handier,  Daniel 
S.  Schulfeld,  Christian  G.  Eeitzel  and  Samuel 
C.  Parmer,  were  ordained  to  the  office  of  deacon. 
At  that  time  the  Revs.  Daniel  Moser,  Adam  Mil- 
ler, Jr.,  and  Jacob  Casner  were  laboring  in  Lin- 
coln County,  N.  C. ;  the  Rev.  H.  Goodman,  in  Ire- 
dell County,  :tT.  C;  the  Rev.  C.  G.  Reitzel,  in 
Guilford  County,  K  C;  and  Rev.  J.  K  Stirewalt, 
in  Rowan  County,  IST.  C.  The  other  twelve  min- 
isters of  the  Tennessee  Synod  had  charges  in 
other  States  outside  of  the  Carolinas. 

During  this  year,  on  the  third  Sunday  in  August, 
a  new  Lutheran  Synod  was  organized  in  the  State 
of  Indiana,  with  which  the  three  ministers  of  the 
Tennessee  Synod,  who  resided  in  Indiana,  doubt- 
less connected  themselves.  They  besought  their 
brethren  of  the  parent  Synod  not  to  regard  this 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  515 

movement  as  "a  separation  or  schism,"  but  rather 
as  a  means  of  "strengthening"  the  Church. 

In  the  South  Carolina  Synod  no  changes  of  im- 
portance occurred  during  the  year  1834.  ^'The 
Theological  Seminary  located  at  Lexington,"  says 
the  President  of  Synod,  in  his  annual  report,  "has 
thus  far  fully  equalled  our  most  sanguine  expec- 
tations." [Nine  young  men  formed  the  first  class 
of  students  of  theology,  namely,  F.  F.  Harris,  J. 
P.  Ring,  D.  Bernhardt,  E.  A.  Bolles,  E.  Hawkins, 
W.  Berly,  H.  Stoudenmyre,  L.  Bedenbaugh  and 
P.  A.  Strobel.  Valuable  additions  to  the  library 
of  the  Seminary  were  presented  by  Messrs.  Henry 
Muller,  Sr.,  of  Piatt  Springs,  Thomas  Purse,  of 
Savannah,  and  the  congregation  of  Ebenezer, 
Georgia. 

In  December,  1833,  the  Missionary  Committee 
of  the  Synod  employed  the  Rev.  P.  Rizer,  "  who 
arrived  at  Lexington,  S.  C,  from  the  State  and 
Synod  of  Maryland,"  as  a  traveling  missionary  in 
the  States  of  Georgia  and  Alabama.  "  He  met 
with  a  very  cordial  reception  from  many  Lutherans 
who  had  emigrated  from  Carolina,  and  found  them 
still  attached  to  the  doctrines  and  usages  of  our 
Church."  In  Monroeville,  at  Flatt  Creek,  and 
at  Bogue-Chitto  Creek,  in  the  State  of  Alabama, 
the  prospects  for  the  immediate  organization  of 
Lutheran  churches  was  so  flattering,  and  the  de- 
mand for  a  pastor  so  urgent,  that  on  the  return  of 
Rev.  Rizer,  one  of  the  theological  students,  Mr. 
F.  F.  Harris,  was  licensed,  and  sent  at  once  to 
these  people  as  their  pastor.     At  the  meeting  of 


516  THE   LUTHERAN  CHURCH 

Synod  in  1834,  he  was  ordained  as  the  pastor  of 
this  hopefui  charge  in  Alabama,  and  remained  in 
that  State  eight  years,  when  he  removed  to  Ohio. 
He  was  succeeded  by  Eevs.  Daily  and  Stouden- 
myre,  but  nothing  is  now  known  of  these  churches, 
and  no  Lutheran  minister  is  at  j)resent  laboring  in 
that  portion  of  Alabama. 

The  President  of  Synod,  Eev.  J.  Bachman,  in 
his  annual  report,  urges  upon  the  members  of 
Synod  the  importance  and  necessity  of  catechetical 
instruction,  stating:  "The  mind  of  man  requires 
iiislructmi  as  well  as  excitement,  and  in  all  our  min- 
istrations we  should  be  cautious  to  enlighten  the 
understanding,  and  to  enable  our  hearers  to  give 
a  reason  for  the  hope  that  is  in  them." 


Section  2.  JRev.  Daniel  Jenkins'  Revivals  in  North 
Caroli7ia — Commissioners  sent  by  the  South  Caro- 
lina Synod  to  the  North  Carolina  Synod,  with 
Proposals  in  Behalf  of  the  Lexington  Theological 
Seminary — Death  of  Rev.  Gottlieb  Shober. 

The  revival  system  or  "  new  measures,"  as  it 
was  then  called,  was  not  introduced  into  the  E'orth 
Carolina  Synod  to  its  full  extent  until  the  year 
1835,  when  the  Rev.  Daniel  Jenkins,  from  Mary- 
land, introduced  it  in  his  congregations.  It  created 
considerable  opposition  both  among  the  clergy  and 
laity  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina. 
The  subject  was  debated  at  Synod,  and  the  Min- 
isterium  passed  the  following  resolutions: 


IN   NORTH   AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  517 

'^Resolved,  That  we  countenance  no  distinction 
between  those  Christians  who  are  separately 
prayed  for  in  public,  and  those  who  retire  into 
their  chambers  for  devotion. 

^^ Resolved,  That  if  any  licentiate  should  depre- 
ciate religious  instruction  of  youth  by  way  of  cate- 
cbization,  or  otherwise,  he  can  never  be  ordained." 

At  no  period  of  time  has  the  JSTorth  Carolina 
Sjaiod  abandoned  catechetical  instruction,  al- 
though in  some  few  congregations  this  old-estab- 
lished "good  rule  of  our  Church"  fell  into  dis- 
use. Frequently  the  "new  measures"  accom- 
plished more  harm  than  good ;  and,  to  use  a  para- 
doxical expression  often  quoted,  several  churches 
were  "  revived  to  death."  The  system  finally  cul- 
minated into  regular  camp  meetings ;  but  from 
that  time  forward  it  commenced  to  decline,  and 
the  ruins  of  the  temporary  little  cabins,  denomi- 
nated "tents,"  and  of  the  covered  sheds  for  preach- 
ing to  large  assemblies,  denominated  "arbors," 
may  still  be  seen  in  some  places,  but  they  are  no 
longer  used  for  the  purpose  originally  intended. 

In  the  year  1836,  Rev.  Dr.  Ilazelius  and  Mr. 
Henry  MuUer  attended  the  meeting  of  the  lN"orth 
Carolina  Synod.  They  came  as  commissioners 
sent  by  the  Synod  of  South  Carolina  for  the  pur- 
pose of  conferring  with  the  members  of  the  North 
Carolina  Synod,  "as  to  the  possibility  and  mutual 
advantage  of  a  union  of  effort  in  the  support  and 
patronage  of  the  Seminary  at  Lexington." 

The  commissioners  made  the  following  pro- 
posals: 


518  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

"1.  The  Synod  of  South  Carolina  will  allow  that 
of  I^orth  Carolina  such  share  in  the  government 
of  the  institution  established  at  Lexington,  as  their 
portion  of  the  funds  shall  equitably  entitle  them  to. 

"2.  The  students  from  N'orth  Carolina  that 
enter  the  Seminary,  shall  be  entitled  to  free  tui- 
tion, as  well  as  the  students  from  South  Carolina. 

"3.  The  fund  collected  by  our  brethren  from 
North  Carolina  shall  remain  under  the  control  of 
the  Synod  of  jbsTorth  Carolina,  and  only  its  j^early 
proceeds  made  over  to  the  treasurer  of  our  Semi- 
nary." 

The  Synod  of  North  Carolina  having  "atten- 
tively heard"  the  proposition  of  the  South  Caro- 
lina Synod's  commissioners,  unanimously — 

'"'Resolved^  To  appoint  two  delegates,  one  cleri- 
cal and  one  lay  delegate,  to  meet  the  Synod  of 
South  Carolina  at  its  next  session  in  November, 
with  instructions  from  this  body  to  unite  our  efforts 
with  our  brethren  in  South  Carolina,  in  the  sup- 
port of  their  Seminary." 

The  delegates  elected  by  ballot  were  Rev.  "Wm. 
Artz  and  Col.  John  Smith;  alternates.  Rev.  H. 
Graeber  and  Moses  L.  Brown. 

Arrangements  were  then  made  for  the  creation 
of  a  fund  for  the  support  of  the  Seminary  at  Lex- 
ington, S.  C.  The  committee  were  also  instructed 
"to  adhere  strictly  to  the  propositions  made  by 
the  commissioners  of  the  South  Carolina  Synod, 
and  to  make  no  agreement  to  raise  a  larger  sum 
of  money  than  can  be  obtained." 

At  the  succeeding  meeting  of  the  South  Caro- 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  519 

liua  Synod,  Eev.  Wm.  Artz,  delegate  from  the 
J^orth  Carolina  Synod,  being  present,  the  above 
propositions  were  confirmed,  with  a  few  addi- 
tional provisos,  one  of  which  was,  "  That  the  right 
be  conceded  to  the  Synods  respectively  to  rescind 
this  agreement,  and  annul  the  obligations  grow- 
ing out  of  it,  whenever  in  the  opinion  of  either 
body  such  a  dissolution  is  advisable." 

On  the  27th  of  June,  1838,  the  Eev.  Gottlieb 
Shober  *' departed  this  life,  after  being  confined 
for  one  day  only,  although  for  some  years  past  his 
bodily  health  and  native  vigor  of  mind  had  been 
rapidly  declining.  At  his  death  he  was  in  the 
eightj^-second  year  of  his  age.  His  life  was  spent 
in  untired  activity  and  useful  labors  until  old  age 
admonished  him  to  seek  retirement."  In  memory 
of  his  death,  the  North  Carolina  Synod  passed  the 
following  resolutions: 

"  Resolved^  That  this  Synod  has  heard  with  deep 
regret  of  the  death  of  the  liev.  Gottlieb  Shober, 
who  has,  for  many  years,  been  an  etiicient  and 
useful  member  of  this  body. 

"  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  will  ever  cherish 
with  grateful  remembrance,  the  active  zeal  and 
eminent  services  of  Father  Shober." 

A  lengthy  memoir  of  Rev.  Shober  is  contained 
in  the  Evangelical  Review,  vol.  viii,  pp.  404-415, 
from  which  we  learn  that  he  was  a  native  of  Beth- 
lehem, Pennsylvania,  and,  *'at  the  time  of  his 
death,  was  the  only  survivor  of  those  who  had  com- 
menced the  building  of  the  town  of  Salem,  'N.  C." 
•  "  In  the  spring  of  1810,  in  company  with  Rev. 
Mr.   Storch,  he   visited   South   Carolina,  during 


520  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

which  occasion  he  preached  his  first  sermon." 
He  was  a  member  of  the  ITorth  Carolina  Synod 
for  a  period  of  twenty-eight  years. 


Section  3.  Increase  of  Lutheran  Ministers  in  the 
Carolinas — Establishment  of  New  Congrega- 
tions—  Visit  of  Rev.  Dr,  Bachman  to  Uurope. 

The  influence  of  the  Theological  Seminary  at 
Lexington,  S.  C,  was  now  beginning  to  be  felt  in 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas;  both  the 
North  and  South  Carolina  Synods  received  from 
it  large  additions  to  the  number  of  their  ministers, 
and  in  other  Southern  States  a  number  of  its 
graduates  were  called  to  labor.  It  supplied  a 
greatly  and  long  felt  want  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  the  South. 

During  the  -Q.ve  years  preceding  the  meeting  of 
the  North  Carolina  Synod  in  1840,  the  following 
additions  were  made  to  its  clerical  roll : 

1.  Rev.  Edwin  A.  Bolles,  a  graduate  of  the 
Lexington,  S.  C,  Theological  Seminary,  was 
licensed  by  the  South  Carolina  Synod  in  1835, 
and  became  the  pastor  of  the  Lutheran  church  in 
Salisbury,  N.  C,  where  he,  however,  remained 
but  a  short  time,  and  removed  to  Ebenezer, 
Georgia.  He  is  laboring  at  present  in  South  Caro- 
lina, as  State  Agent  for  the  American  Bible  So- 
ciety. 

2.  Eev.  Benjamin  Arey,  from  the  Theological 
Seminary  of  Gettysburg,  Pennsylvania,  licensed 
by  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in  1836,  became  at 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  521 

first  located  in  Davidson  County,  and  labored  in 
various  charges  in  the  bounds  of  Synod,  but  finally 
located  himself  permanently  in  Iredell  County, 
K  C. 

3.  Rev.  John  Svvicegood,  licensed  at  the  same 
time,  made  his  permanent  home  in  Davidson 
County,  but  frequently  labored  in  the  counties 
adjoining.  He  departed  this  life  September  9th, 
1870,  in  the  full  triumphs  of  a  Gospel  faith. 

4.  Rev.  Elijah  Hawkins,  a  graduate  of  the  Sem- 
inary at  Lexington,  S.  C,  became  connected  with 
the  Synod  in  1837,  and  labored  in  Wythe  County, 
Virginia,  to  the  close  of  a  most  useful  life. 

5.  Rev.  Philip  A.  Strobel,  likewise  connected 
himself  with  the  ]N"orth  Carolina  Synod  in  1837, 
having  graduated  at  Lexington,  S.  C,  in  1836; 
he  labored  for  a  short  time  as  agent  for  the  Sem- 
inar}^, and  then  located  himself  in  Concord,  IN".  C. 
He  did  good  service  in  the  IN'orth  Carolina  Sj^nod 
in  establishing  several  new  churches,  and  remained 
in  Concord  four  years,  when  he  returned  to  South 
Carolina. 

6.  Rev.  Jacob  Crim,  from  the  Lexington  Sem- 
inary, attached  himself  to  the  North  Carolina 
Synod  in  1838,  and  labored  successively  in  David- 
son, Rowan  and  Davie  Counties.  In  1869  he 
removed  to  the  State  of  Texas,  where  he  shortly 
afterwards  was  called  to  his  rest. 

7.  Rev.  John  J.  Greever,  a  "  student  of  the 
Gett3'sburg  Theological  Seminary,"  was  licensed 
by  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in  1840;  he  labors 

44 


522  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

still  in  Wythe  County,  Virginia,  where  he  was  first 
located. 

8.  Rev.  E".  Alclrich,  a  "  student  of  divinity  of 
the  Episcopal  Church  at  Bristol  College,  Pennsyl- 
vania," was  licensed  by  the  North  Carolina  Synod 
in  1840,  remained  only  a  few  months  at  Concord, 
IT.  C,  when  he  removed  to  Savannah,  Georgia, 
and  became  the  successor  of  Rev.  S.  A.  Mealy,  as 
pastor  of  the  Lutheran  church  in  that  city.  He 
is  the  present  pastor  of  St.  Mark's  Lutheran 
Church,  in  Charlotte,  N.  C. 

9.  Rev.  Gideon  Scherer,  "  a  student  of  the 
Theological  Seminary  at  Lexington,  S.  C,"  was 
licensed  by  the  E"orth  Carolina  Synod  in  1840, 
and  located  himself  in  Wythe  County,  Virginia. 

In  the  South  Carolina  Synod  the  increase  in  the 
number  of  ministers  was  still  greater,  and  it  w^as 
not  long  before  all  the  vacant  charges  were  sup- 
plied with  the  regular  ministrations  of  the  word 
and  sacraments. 

Li  the  year  1831,  before  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary went  into  full  operation,  four  ministers  were 
licensed  by  the  South  Carolina  Synod,  whose 
names  have  not  yet  been  mentioned,  namely: 
Revs.  Herrman  Anil,  William  llotchkiss,  George 
Haltiwanger,  Sr.,  and  Robert  Cloy.  Rev.  AuU 
lived,  labored  and  died  in  Newberry  Disftri<^'t,  S.  C. 
Rev.  Haltiwanger  became  the  pastor  of  St.  Mat- 
thew's Church  in  Orangeburg  District,  S.  C,  and 
labored  with  great  acceptance  and  usefulness  in 
various  parts  of  South  Carolina  to  the  close  of  his 


IN  NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  523 

life,  April  18th,  1849.     Rev.  Cloy  labored  in  Barn- 
well District,  S.  C. ;  be  died  May  4tb,  1853. 

From  1835  to  1840,  tbe  following  additional 
names  were  added  to  tbe  ministerial  roll  of  tbe 
Soutb  Carolina  Synod  : 

1.  Eev.  James  P.  Ring,  a  graduate  of  tbe  Lex- 
ington Theological  Seminary,  was  licensed  by  tlie 
South  Carolina  Synod  in  1835,  and  devoted  bis 
life  to  teaching.  He  was  Professor  of  a  classical 
institution  in  the  cit}^  of  Augusta,  Georgia,  at 
which  place  be  died,  April  12th,  1852. 

2.  Rev.  David  Bernhardt,  was  the  son  of  Rev. 
C.  E.  Bernbai'dt,  whose  history  has  been  given  in 
a  previous  chapter.  The  son  became  a  student 
and  graduate  of  tbe  Theological  Seminar}^  at  Lex- 
ington, and  was  licensed  by  Synod,  A.D.  1835. 
He  bad  charge  of  St.  Matthew's  Church,  Orange- 
burg District,  and  Sandy  Run  Church,  Lexington 
District,  S.  C,  np  to  the  close  of  his  life,  April 
13th,  1843. 

3.  Rev.  Levi  Bedenbaugh,  a  student  of  Lexing- 
ton Seminary,  was  licensed  at  tbe  same  time.  His 
principal  field  of  operations  has  been  Coweta 
County,  Georgia,  where  be  is  still  laboring. 

4.  Rev.  David  Plungerpeler,  was  licensed  in 
1836,  and  died  April  20th,  1840.  He  labored  in 
Barnwell  District,  S.  C. 

5.  Rev.  William  Berl}^  a  graduate  of  the  Lex- 
ington Seminary,  was  licensed  in  1836,  labored 
for  a  time  in  Newberry  District,  S.  C,  was  elected 
tbe  second  Professor  of  the  Theological  Seminary 
at  Lexington  in  1850,  whereupon  he  removed  to 


524  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Lexington  Court-House  in  1851,  where  he  is  still 
residing,  laboring  as  pastor  there. 

6.  Rev.  William  G.  Harter,  also  a  graduate  of 
the  Lexington  Seminary,  was  licensed  in  1837, 
labored  in  the  States  of  South  Carolina,  North 
Carolina  and  Kentuck}' ;  he  was  called  to  his  rest 
July  31st,  1864. 

7.  Eev.  H.  Stoudenmyer  was  licensed  in  1838, 
and  labored  for  a  time  in  the  State  of  Alabama. 

8.  Rev.  S.  R.  Sheppard,  a  student  of  the  Lex- 
ington Seminary,  was  licensed  in  1838,  labored  for 
some  time  in  Edgefield  District,  S.  C,  removed  to 
the  State  of  Mississippi  in  1853,  where  he  recently 
departed  this  life. 

9.  Rev.  J.  Kleckly  was  hcensed  in  1839,  and 
labored  in  the  State  of  Georgia,  where  he  died  a 
few  years  ago. 

10.  Rev.'william  II.  Smith,  of  the  State  of 
Maryland,  was  elected  assistant  pastor  to  Rev. 
John  Bachman,  D.D.,  in  1839,  was  ordained  by 
the  South  Carolina  Synod  April  24th,  1839,  re- 
mained three  years,  and  returned  to  the  i^orth. 

11.  Rev.  S.  Bouknight,  hcensed  in  1840;  he 
labors  principall}^  in  Lexington  District,  S.  C. 

12.  Rev.  J.  P.  Margart,  a  graduate  of  the  Sem- 
inary at  Lexington,  licensed  in  1840,  labored  in 
Orangeburg,  Newberry  and  Lexington  Districts, 
S.  C,  removed  to  Alabama  in  1862,  where  he  still 
resides,  making  strong  efforts  to  build  up  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  that  State. 

13.  Rev.  George  Haltiwanger,  Jr.,  a  student  of 
the  Lexington  Theological  Seminary,  was  licensed 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  525 

in  1840,  labored  in  Lexington  District,  S.  C,  until 
1849,  when  he  became  the  pastor  of  the  Ebenezer 
charge  in  Georgia,  where  he  labored  to  the  close 
of  his  life;  he  died  on  the  10th  of  February,  1862. 

14.  "  Rev.  C.  B.  Thuemmel,  formerly  of  the 
Synod  of  l!Tew  York,"  took  charge  of  the  classical 
school  connected  with  the  Theological  Seminary 
at  Lexington,  S.  C,  in  1841;  he  labored  in  that 
capacity  three  years,  when  he  returned  to  the 
:N^orth. 

15.  Rev.  J.  Daily  was  licensed  in  1840,  and 
labored  in  Alabama. 

Other  ministers  were  licensed  by  the  South 
Carolina  Sj^nod  during  this  period,  but  as  their 
names  have  been  mentioned  in  connection  with 
the  North  Carolina  Synod,  it  is  not  necessary  to 
insert  them  here  again. 

The  Tennessee  Synod  was  likewise  blessed  with 
a  considerable  addition  to  her  ministerial  strength, 
during  the  live  years  preceding  the  year  1840,  as 
follows : 

1.  Rev.  Abel  J.  Brown,  was  ordained  a  deacon 
in  1836,  labored  for  several  years  in  Lincoln 
County,  N".  C,  but  made  his  home  finally  in  Ten- 
nessee, where  he  is  still  doing  good  service  in  his 
Master's  vineyard. 

2.  Rev.  Jacob  Killian  was  ordained  a  deacon  at 
the  same  time,  and  labored  in  Augusta  County, 
Ya.,  where  he  departed  this  life  July  5th,  1871. 

3.  Rev.  Jonathan  R.  Moser  was  likewise  or- 
dained to  the  deacon's  oifice  in  1836,  labored  a 
number  of  years  in  Lincoln  County,  N.  C,  but 


526  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

finally  moved  to  Missouri,  where  he  is  still  resid- 
ing. 

4.  Rev.  Henry  Wetzel,  was  ordained  deacon  in 
1837,  is  still  laboring  in  Virginia. 

5.  Rev.  Adam  S.  Link  was  ordained  at  the  same 
time,  but  afterwards  moved  to  Ohio,  where  he 
died,  March  30th,  1862. 

6.  Rev.  Jacob  Stirewalt  was  likewise  ordained 
deacon  in  1837 ;  he  became  pastor  in  'New  Market, 
Va.,  where  he  labored  to  the  close  of  his  life;  he 
died  August  26th,  1869,  in  his  67th  year. 

7.  Rev.  Albert  J.  Fox  was  ordained  deacon  in 
1837,  labored  successively  in  Korth  Carolina,  Ten- 
nessee, and  Alabama,  but  since  1855  has  been  re- 
siding near  Lincolnton,  IsT.  C,  where  he  is  still 
laboring  in  the  Lord's  vineyard. 

The  following  new  congregations  were  organ- 
ized and  new  church  edifices  erected  in  the  Caro- 
linas  during  the  five  years  preceding  1840. 

1.  Luther's  Church,  in  Rowan  County,  N.  C, 
is  first  mentioned  by  that  name  in  the  minutes  of 
1830,  but  at  what  time  the  congregation  was  or- 
ganized is  not  stated.  The  Rev.  Jacob  Kaempfer 
was  its  pastor  in  1830. 

2.  *S'^.  Enoch's  Church,  in  Rowan  County,  N.  C, 
is  a  colony  from  the  Sewitz's  or  Luther  Chapel 
congregation,  and  was  organized  in  1836;  it  is 
not  stated  when  their  church  edifice  was  erected; 
it  was  dedicated  at  some  time  during  the  fall  of 
1839. 

3.  St.  PauVs  Church,  in  Rowan  County,  K.  C, 
is  first  mentioned  in   1837,   under  the   name   of 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  527 

Holdsbonser's  Church,  with  Rev.  S.  Roth  rock  as 
its  pastor.  A  new  brick  church  has  been  recently 
erected  and  was  dedicated  July  21st,  1872. 

4.  St.  Stephen'' s  Church,  Cabarrus  County,  N. 
C,  was  organized  in  1837  by  the  Rev.  P.  A. 
Strobel,  who  was  its  lirst  pastor.  It  was  received 
under  the  care  of  the  North  Carolina  Synod  in 
1838. 

5.  St.  Matthew's  Church,  Ro\Yan  County,  N.  C, 
sent  a  communication  to  the  North  Carolina  83-- 
nod  in  1838,  "  stating  that  they  have  regularly 
organized  themselves  into  a  congregation,  and 
pray  to  be  received  under  the  care  of  Synod ;  also, 
that  they  have  chosen  the  Rev.  B.  Arey  as  their 
pastor." 

6.  St.  Matthew's  congregation,  in  Davie  County, 
N.  C,  is  first  mentioned  in  1839  in  the  minutes 
of  the  North  Carolina  Synod,  when  forty-three 
persons  in  that  locality  petitioned  the  Synod  to 
send  them  a  minister  "  to  break  unto  them  the 
bread  of  eternal  truth,  to  baptize  their  children, 
and  instruct  their  youth." 

Two  new  cliurch  edifices  were  erected  in  old- 
established  congregations  during  the  yenv  1839, 
namely:  St.  Paul's  Church,  Orange  (now  Ala- 
mance) County,  N.  C,  which  was  dedicated  on 
the  third  Sunday  in  September,  1839;  and  Luther 
Chapel,  in  Rowan  County,  N.  C,  which  was  dedi- 
cated about  the  same  time. 

7.  St.  PauVs  Church,  Iredell  County,  N.  C,  and 
the  above-named  St.  Matthew's  Church,  in  Davie 
County,  N.  C,  are  mentioned  in  the  minutes  of 


528  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

\ 

the  I^oYth  Carolina  Synod  of  1840,  as  having 
"  been  regularly  organized  during  the  last  synodi- 
cal  year,"  and  were  received,  in  1840,  under  the 
care  of  Synod. 

In  the  bounds  of  the  South  Carolina  Synod  the 
following  churches  were  added  to  the  strength  of 
the  Synod. 

1.  SL  Andreiv's  Church,  Lexington  District,  S. 
C,  w^as  organized  in  1835,  and  during  the  same 
year  their  church  edifice  was  erected  and  dedicated. 
In  1835,  they  petitioned  Synod  for  the  pastoral 
labors  of  Rev.  L.  Bedenbaugh,  but  from  the  min- 
utes of  1836  it  appears  that  Rev.  M.  Ranch  was 
their  first  pastor. 

2.  31ouni  Zion  Church,  Newberry  District,  S.  C, 
having  been  organized  under  the  pastoral  care 
of  Rev.  J.  Moser,  their  church  edifice  was  dedi- 
cated on  the  fifth  Sunday  in  August,  1840. 

3.  Good  Hojje  Church,  at  Cloud's  Creek,  Edge- 
field District,  S.  C,  having  been  organized  some 
time  in  1839,  their  newly-erected  church  edifice 
was  dedicated  on  the  19th  of  April,  1840.  Their 
first  pastor  was  the  Rev.  R.  Cloy;  it  was  received 
under  the  care  of  Synod  in  1840. 

The  labors  of  Rev.  John  Bachman,  D.D.,  LL.D., 
having  been  for  many  years  very  arduous,  inas- 
much as  he  was  necessitated  to  preach  three  times 
every  Sunday  for  the  long  period  of  twenty  years, 
and  frequently  both  in  the  English  and  German 
languages,  his  being  the  only  Lutheran  church  in 
Charleston,  S.  C,  at  that  time;  besides,  having 
also  devoted  much  of  his  time  to  natural  science, 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  529 

he  and  the  renowned  naturalist,  J.  J.  Audubon, 
being  associated  together  in  preparing  for  the 
press  "  The  Quadrupeds  of  America,"  his  health 
at  length  became  impaired,  and,  at  the  repeated 
solicitations  of  his  congregation,  to  whom  his  life 
and  labors  were  exceedingly  valuable,  he  left  his 
home  on  a  visit  to  Europe,  in  1838,  believing  that 
he  looked  upon  the  shores  of  his  native  land  for 
the  last  time.  He  was  absent  eight  months,  and 
was  received  everj-where  on  his  transatlantic  tour 
with  "  sympathy,  kindness,  and  untiring  hospi- 
tality." He  "returned  in  January,  1839,  with 
health  partially  restored,"  and  his  congregation 
engaged  the  Eev.  William  H.  Smith,  of  Maryland, 
as  an  assistant  minister  for  a  few  years,  until  his 
health  was  re-established,  when,  in  1842,  he  once 
more  assumed  the  entire  charge  of  the  pastoral 
duties  of  his  church. 


Section  ^.  Settlement  of  North- Germans  in  South- 
ern cities.  Organization  and  Early  History  of 
St.  Matthew's  German  Evangelical-Lutheran 
Churchy  Charleston^  S.  G. 

Many  years  had  now  elapsed  since  the  tide  of 
German  emigration  to  J^orth  and  South  Carolina 
had  entirely  ceased.  The  dependence  for  the  in- 
crease of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  those  States 
rested  mainly  upon  the  descendants  of  the  early 
settlers.     Hovvever,  about  the  year  1835,  emigrar 

45 


530  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

tiou  from  l!^orth  Germany  foancl  its  wa}^  also  to 
Southern  cities,  and  every  fall  new  emigrants  from 
that  portion  of  the  Fatherland  continued  to  arrive. 

The  laro-est  number  of  these  settlers  located 
themselves  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  but  many  have 
found  homes  in  Wilmington,  ^N".  C,  Savannah, 
Georgia,  and  other  Southern  cities.  They  are 
mostly  natives  of  Hanover,  Oldenburg,  Holstein, 
Mecklenburg,  and  the  once  free  cities  of  Hamburg 
and  Bremen,  although  a  number  of  emigrants 
from  other  German  states  may  be  found  among 
them. 

These  North  Germans  are  regarded  as  the  direct 
descendants  of  those  Saxon  nations  which  con- 
quered ancient  Britain,  a  portion  of  whom,  after 
the  Saxon  conquest,  located  themselves  perma- 
nently in  England.  That  this  "is  a  fact  established 
beyond  dispute  may  be  readily  learned  from  the 
pages  of  history,  and  easily  perceived  from  the 
contiguity  of  those  I^orth-German  countries  to 
England,  their  maritime  character,  and  their  lan- 
guage. It  may  not  be  generally  known,  that  the 
5rorth  Germans  speak  two  languages,  the  high 
German,  which  is  the  written  language,  taught  at 
school  and  preached  from  the  pulpit,  and  the  low 
German  (Platdeutsch),  which  is  the  original  lan- 
guage of  the  ancient  North  Saxons,  still  spoken 
and  generally  used  in  those  countries,  and  bears  a 
remarkable  resemblance  to  the  present  pure  Eng- 
lish or  Anglo-Saxon  language.  Hence,  North 
Germans  generally  find  no  difiiculty  in  acquiring 
a  knowledge  of  the  English  language  soon  after 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  531 

their  arrival  in  this  countiy,  and  learn  to  pro- 
nounce it  correctly  with  remarkable  facility. 

As  the  Korth  Germans  are  natives  of  maritime 
States,  they  prefer  mercantile  to  agricultural  pur- 
suits, and  hence  they  are  generally  found  engaged 
in  mercantile  employments  in  our  Southern  cities, 
though  not  entirely  confined  to  that  kind  of  life. 

Captain  H.  Wieting,  a  name  familiar  to  all  our 
North- German  citizens  in  the  Southern  States,  and 
his  vessels,  the  "Johann  Friederich,"  and  the 
barque  "  Copernicus,"  of  which  successively  he 
was  commander,  usually  arrived,  for  some  length 
of  time,  once  a  year  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  filled 
with  German  passengers,  who  expected  to  make 
their  future  home  in  the  South. 

These  German  settlers,  by  means  of  their 
economy,  good  management,  and  excellent  busi- 
ness talents,  have  acquired  considerable  property, 
and  control  a  large  portion  of  the  commercial  and 
other  interests  in  the  cities  and  towns  where  they 
reside. 

The  Lutheran  faith  being  the  prevailing  re- 
ligion in  l!^orth  Germany,  although  German  Re- 
formed and  Roman  Catholics  may  likewise  be 
found  there,  these  immigrants  are  generally  mem- 
bers of  the  Lutheran  Church,  and,  upon  their  ar- 
rival in  this  country,  usually  attach  themselves 
immediately  to  Lutheran  congregations. 

Rev.  E.  L.  Hazelius,  D.D.,  President  of  the 
South  Carolina  Synod,  in  his  annual  report  of 
1839,  speaks  of  the  first  attempt  of  the  native  Ger- 
man citizens  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  in  establishing 


532  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

a  second,  and  altogether  German,  Lutheran 
Church,  in  the  following  manner : 

^'A  desire  having  been  expressed  by  a  consid- 
erable number  of  German  citizens  of  Charleston, 
to  have  the  Gospel  preached  to  them  in  the 
language  of  their  Fatherland,  meetings  of  the 
Germans  were  held  during  my  sta^^  in  the  city 
and  afterwards,  for  the  purpose  of  making  the 
necessary  arrangements  ;  and  I  have  since  learned 
that  articles  of  a  Church  union  were  drawn  up  and 
adopted;  that  $500  had  been  collected,  and  about 
as  much  had  been  subscribed  for  the  salary  of  a 
German  preacher.  I  endeavored  to  encourage 
these  friends  to  proceed  in  the  good  cause." 

In  the  Charleston  Courier  may  be  found  an 
account  of  the  next  steps  that  were  taken  in  this 
direction. 

"On  the  3d  day  of  December,  A.D.  1840,  the 
first  German  congregation  was  organized  in  this 
city,  with  the  following  founders:  John  A.  Wag- 
ener,  George  Caulier,  C.  Heide,  F.  Mehrtens,  F. 
Hilgen,  J.  Hlirkamp,  W.  H.  Hoops,  J.  Haesloop, 
J.  Stelling,  Geo.  Rieke,  J.  H.  Ostendorfi",  J. 
Schroder,  J.  Kleinbeck,  C.  Gerdts,  J.  Bauman, 
and  L.  F.  Behling.  The  congregation  so  formed 
soon  made  arrangements  for  the  erection  of  a 
place  of  worship." 

They  adopted  a  constitution  for  their  govern- 
ment on  the  9th  of  December,  1840,  and  soon 
afterwards  purchased  a  lot  on  the  corner  of  Hasell 
and  Anson  Streets,  on  which  they  erected  a  brick 
church  edifice.     In  the  election  of  ofiicers,  Col. 


IN   NORTH   AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  533 

John  A.  Wageiier  was  chosen  their  first  Presi- 
dent. In  the  month  of  October,  1841,  the  corner- 
stone of  this  (St.  Matthew's)  church  was  laid,  at 
which  time  the  congregation  ah-eady  numbered 
two  hundred  and  twenty-five  members.  Their 
first  pastor  was  the  Eev.  F.  Becher,  who  had  been, 
up  to  that  time,  a  minister  of  the  German  Re- 
formed Church,  but  connected  himself  with  the 
South  Carolina  Synod  in  1841,  after  having  taken 
charge  of  this  new  German  Lutheran  congregation. 
However,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Becher  did  not  remain 
long  in  Charleston.  In  1842  the  Rev.  F.  W. 
Heemsoth  took  charge  of  the  congregation,  and 
on  the  22d  of  June  of  the  same  year,  the  new 
church  was  dedicated,  and  the  newly  elected  pas- 
tor duly  installed.  *'Rev.  Mr.  Heemsoth  served 
the  congregation  until  1848,  when  he  resigned 
and  returned  to  his  native  country,  where  he  now 
resides,"  and  is  the  beloved  pastor  of  a  large  Lu- 
theran church  in  Germany. 


Section  5.  Formation  of  the  Western  Virginia  Synod ^ 
and  Death  of  Rev.  Henry  Graeber. 

It  would  not  be  proper  to  notice  the  formation 
of  the  Synod  of  Western  Virginia  in  the  history 
of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Carolinas,  were  it 
not  for  the  fact,  that  the  territory  of  the  Synod  of 
Western  Virginia  w^as,  for  a  long  period  of  time, 
embraced  in  the  limits  of  the  North  Carolina 
Synod,  which  watched  over  the  interests  of  the 


534  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Lutheran  Church  in  Western  Virginia  with  a 
motlier's  tender  care,  supplying  that  field  with 
missionaries  at  first,  and  afterwards  with  pastors. 

But  the  time  had  now  arrived,  when  the  old 
mother  Synod  was  to  be  confined  within  the  limits 
of  the  State  from  which  she  derived  her  name;  all 
her  ecclesiastical  operations  were  henceforth  to  be 
devoted  to  I^orth  Carolina  alone.  The  interests 
of  the  Church  demanded  that  the  brethren  in 
Southwestern  Virginia  were  to  form  a  Synod  for 
themselves,  and  the  sequel  has  proved  that  this 
was  a  step  taken  in  the  right  direction,  for  it  has 
developed  the  energies  of  that  portion  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  in  a  most  remarkable  manner,  both 
in  missionary  and  educational  enterprises. 

Accordingly,  on  the  20th  of  September,  1841,  a 
convention  was  held  in  Wythe  County,  Virginia, 
for  the  purpose  of  taking  the  preliminary  steps 
towards  the  formation  of  a  Synod,  and  on  the  21st 
of  May,  1842,  "the  ministers  residing  in  Western 
Virginia,  with  their  la}^  delegates,  assembled  in 
Zion's  Church,  Floyd  County,  Virginia."  The 
ministers,  who  registered  their  names  as  members 
of  the  newly  formed  Synod,  were :  Eevs.  Jacob 
Scherer,  Samuel  Sayford,  Elijah  Hawkins,  John 
J.  Greever,  Gideon  Scherer  and  Stephen  Rudy. 
The  ofiicers  of  Synod  then  elected  were :  Rev. 
Jacob  Scherer,  President;  Rev.  Elijah  Hawkins, 
Secretary;  and  Mr.  Joseph  Brown,  Treasurer. 
The  strength  of  Synod  then  reported  was,  fifteen 
congregations  and  seven  hundred  and  seventy- 
eight  communicants. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  535 

From  the  Synod  of  iSTorth  Carolina,  established 
in  the  year  1803,  and  which  at  one  time  embraced 
a  large  scope  of  territory,  the  following  Synods 
have  gone  out,  and  are  still  doing  good  service  in 
the  vineyard  of  the  Lord  : 

The  Tennessee  Synod,  organized  A.D.  1820. 

The  South  Carolina  Synod,  organized  A.D.  1824. 

The  Western  Virginia  Synod,  organized  A.D. 
1842. 

From  these  again  the  following  additional 
Synods  have  been  formed:  The  Georgia  Synod, 
the  Mississippi  Synod,  the  Holston  Synod,  and 
the  Concordia  Synod.  The  Lutheran  Church  in 
the  West,  and  particularly  in  Illinois,  was  also 
cradled  and  nourished  in  its  infancy  by  the  Korth 
Carolina  Synod. 

The  Eev.  Henry  Graeber,  who  at  one  time 
wielded  a  considerable  influence  in  the  K'orth 
Carolina  Synod,  and  who,  on  account  of  his  ster- 
ling virtues  and  pov/er  of  his  native  intellect,  as 
well  as  by  his  energy  of  character,  accomplished 
much  good,  was  now  called  to  his  rest,  while  yet 
in  the  strength  of  his  years,  and  in  the  height  of 
his  usefulness.  After  a  short  illness  he  unexpect- 
edly departed  this  life.  September  llth,  1843. 
The  President  of  Synod,  Rev.  Wm.  Artz,  gives 
us  the  following  account  of  this  sad  event,  con- 
nected with  a  brief  memoir  of  Rev.  Graeber's  life: 

"When  the  names  of  the  members  of  our  min- 
isterial association  shall  be  called,  and  every  one 
present  shall  take  his  seat,  the  place  of  our  worthy 
and   beloved  brother,  the  Rev.  Henry  Graeber, 


536  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

will  be  vacant.  How  sad !  How  unexpected ! 
lie  has  ceased  from  his  labors  in  the  vineyard  of 
the  Lord  on  earth,  and  has  entered  the  rest  above, 
to  reap  the  eternal  reward  which  Jesus  has  prom- 
ised to  all  his  faithful  servants. 

'  His  conflicts  with  his  busy  foes 

For  evermore  shall  cease, 
None  shall  his  happiness  oppose, 

Nor  interrupt  his  peace. 
But  bright  rewards  shall  recompense 

His  faithful  service  here, 
And  perfect  love  shall  banish  thence 

Each  gloomy  doubt  and  fear.' 

"  Our  worthy  brother,  the  Eev.  Henry  Graeber, 
was  born  of  Christian  parents  in  the  State  of  Penn- 
sylvania, in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1793,  the  28th  of 
January.  He  prosecuted  the  study  of  divinity 
chiefly  under  the  able  and  pious  instructions  of 
the  Rev.  Messrs.  Melsheimer  and  Lochman.  He 
obtained  license  to  preach  the  Gospel  from  the 
Synod  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the  7th  of  June,  in  the 
year  1818,  and  was  shortly  afterwards  set  apart  to 
this  holy  work  b}^  the  imposition  of  hands  and 
prayer.  J^ine  years  of  his  ministerial  life  he  spent 
as  pastor  of  several  congregations  in  Frederick 
Count}^,  Maryland,  and  the  remaining  sixteen 
years  were  spent  in  several  congregations  in  Lin- 
coln, Rowan,  and  Cabarrus  Counties,  in  the  bounds 
of  our  Synod,  of  which  he  was  an  efficient  mem- 
ber, and  in  which  he  repeatedly  filled  with  honor 
the  highest  offices.  He  was  a  liberal  supporter  of 
benevolent  institutions,  and  a  warm  and  decided 
friend  of  an  enlightened  and  educated  ministry. 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH   CAROLINA.  537 

He  was  himself  an  able  and  faithful  minister  of 
the  New  Testament,  rightly  dividing  the  word  of 
eternal  truth,  and  giving  to  both  saints  and  sinners 
their  portion  in  due  season.  And  I  need  not 
add,  in  the  presence  of  those  who  knew  him  long, 
and  who  knew  him  well,  that  throu2:h  the  course 
of  his  ministerial  life,  he  unilbrmly  adorned  the 
doctrines  which  he  preached  by  zeal,  fidelity,  firm- 
ness, and  charity,  and  all  those  virtues  that  are  so 
essential  to  the  character  of  the  Christian  minister. 
He  died  of  nervous  fever  on  the  11th  of  September 
last,  in  the  51st  year  of  his  age.  While  his  ashes 
sleep  in  the  peaceful  tomb,  may  his  memory  be 
cherished  by  us  with  fraternal  affection." 

His  body  lies  entombed  in  the  Organ  Church 
graveyard,  not  far  distant  from  the  place  where 
repose  the  remains  of  Rev.  C.  A.  G.  Storch,  and 
where  at  this  time  the  bodies  of  four  Lutheran  min- 
isters sleep  until  the  morning  of  the  resurrectioti. 

The  following  epitaph  has  been  inscribed  on  the 
marble  slab  which  covers  his  mortal  remains: 

"  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  the  Rev.  Henry 
Graeber,  who  was  born  on  the  28th  of  January, 
1793;  and  departed  this  life  on  the  11th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1843.  Aged  50  years,  7  months,  and  13 
days. 

'  The  Gospel  was  his  joy  and  song, 

E'en  to  his  hitest  breath  ; 
The  truth  he  had  proclaimed  so  long, 

Was  his  support  in  death. 
The  grave  is  now  his  favored  spot, 

To  sleep  in  Jesus  blessed, 
There,  where  the  wicked  trouble  not, 

He  laid  his  head  to  rest.'  " 


538  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 


Section  6.  Endowment  of  a  Second  Professorship  in 
the  Theological  Seminary  at  Lexington^  S.  C. — 
3Iemoir  of  Henry  Midler^  Sr. 

The  eclucatioDal  interests  of  the  Lutheran 
Clmrch  in  the  Carol inas  had  now  become  so 
greatly  developed,  that  it  became  necessar}^  to 
endow  an  additional  professorship  for  the  Theo- 
logical Seminary  at  Lexington,  S.  C.  Provision 
had  been  made  for  several  years  past  to  have  a 
classical  Professor  connected  with  the  Seminar}', 
and  the  Rev.  Washington  Muller,  Rev.  C.  B. 
Thuemmel,  and  Mr.  S.  E.  Caughman  had  each 
successivel}^  been  appointed  to  this  position  by 
the  Board  of  Directors,  and  had  acted  in  that 
capacity;  but  for  want  of  a  permanent  endowment 
of  this  professorship,  the  arrangement  was  sub- 
jected to  repeated  interruption. 

The  discussion  of  this  matter,  as  well  as  that  of 
the  location  of  the  Seminary,  during  the  year  1848, 
in  the  columns  of  the  Lutheran  Observer,  brought 
the  subject  prominently  before  the  Church,  and 
at  the  next  meeting  of  the  South  Carolina  Synod, 
held  at  Sandy  Run  Church,  in  Lexington  District, 
the  President  of  Synod  recommended  "  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  special  committee  to  investigate 
and  report  upon  this  whole  subject." 

The  conmiittee  appointed  in  accordance  with 
the  reccmimendation  of  the  President  were:  Revs. 
John  Bachman,  D.D.,  John  F.  W.  Leppard  and 
J.  B.  Anthony,  of  the  clergy;  and  Messrs.  George 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  530 

M.  Fulmer,  John  C.  Geiger  and  John  Ranch,  of 
the  hiity,  who  gave  the  matter  a  thorough  and 
prayerful  consideration,  ch:)sing  their  lengthy  re- 
port as  folk)ws : 

"In  the  midst  of  our  anxious  and  prayerful  de- 
liherations,  a  providential  and  thrilling  scene  pre- 
sented itself,  that  gave  a  presentiment  of  God's 
favor  and  our  prospect  of  success.  One  of  our 
benevolent  lay  members,  whose  untiring  zeal  and 
liberality  has  ever  kept  him  far  in  advance  of  all 
our  other  benefactors,  and  whose  praise  is  in  all 
the  churches,  rose  to  present  to  this  object  the 
sum  of  $4000,  on  condition  that  individuals  from 
the  various  portions  of  our  Church  should  pledge 
themselves  to  make  up  a  similar  amount,  to  be 
appropriated  to  the  same  benevolent  object.  From 
that  moment  we  regarded  the  work,  as  done.  We 
have  only  to  say  to  ourselves,  to  our  brethren,  the 
ministers,  delegates,  and  members  of  our  churches, 
'  go,' and  in  proportion  to  your  circumstances,  ^  do 
ye  likewise,'  and  the  object  of  our  anxious  solici- 
tude and  ardent  prayers  will  be  accomplished.  We 
have  been  purchased  by  the  blood  of  Christ — let 
us  evidence  our  gratitude  by  contributing  to  send 
the  lio'ht  of  salvation  to  those  for  whom  he  died. 

"  The  Church  demands  these  small  pecuniary 
sacrifices — let  us  say  to  our  people  and  to  the 
world,  we  esteem  it  an  honor  and  a  privilege  to 
respond  to  her  call.  Here,  in  the  presence  of  the 
Living  God,  surrounded  by  the  ministers,  and 
fathers,  and  representatives  of  our  beloved  Church, 
let  us  resolve  that  ere  we  separate  for  our  distant 


540  THE    LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

homes,  na}^  ere  yon  sun  shall  set,  ere  another 
night  shall  intervene  to  awaken  the  feelings  of 
selfishness,  or  throw  a  shadow  of  doubt  over  the 
bright  picture  of  Christian  benevolence  which  is 
now^  before  us,  let  us  resolve  in  the  strength,  the 
fear,  and  love,  and  in  imitation  of  our  benevolent 
Master,  whose  office  on  earth  was  to  go  about 
doing  good,  that  this  w^ork  shall  be  consummated. 
Let  us  resolve  with  the  pious  men  of  old :  '  O 
Jerusalem,  if  I  forget  thee,  let  my  right  hand  for- 
get her  cunning.  If  I  do  not  remember  thee,  let 
my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth,  if  I 
remember  not  Jerusalem,  my  chief  joy.'  " 
(Signed) 
John  Bachman,  George  M.  Fulmer, 

John  F.  W.  Leppard,      John  C.  Geiger, 
J.  B.  Anthony,  John  Eauch. 

This  stirring  appeal  had  the  desired  efifect — the 
inspiration  of  a  sense  of  this  new  duty  and  of  love 
to  the  Church  pervaded  the  whole  assembly,  and 
before  the  Synod  closed  that  memorable  day's 
session,  the  required  sum  was  pledged,  secured, 
and  afterwards  paid  in  as  the  instalments  became 
due.  An  additional  sum  of  $3223  was  subse- 
quently added  to  this  fund,  through  a  seven 
months'  agency  of  Rev.  G.  D.  Bernheim,  who  was 
employed  by  the  Board  of  Directors  for  this  pur- 
pose. 

The  following  resolution  of  thanks  to  Mr.  Henry 
Muller,  Sr.,  was  then  adopted  : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  Synod  be  pre- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  541 

sented  to  our  venerable  and  esteemed  friend  and 
benefactor,  Henry  Muller,  Sr.,  for  his  many  labors 
and  sacrifices  in  behalf  of  our  Theological  Semin- 
ary, and  the  various  interests  of  the  Church,  for 
his  generous  contributions  from  year  to  year,  and 
for  his  liberal  donation  to  the  Seminary,  at  our 
present  session,  of  $4000." 

Mr.  Muller's  benefactions  toward  this  object  did 
not  cease  with  that  donation;  at  his  own  expense 
he  had  a  dwelling  erected,  costing  about  $2000, 
for  the  use  of  the  second  Professor,  and  donated  it 
to  the  Synod,  so  that  this  new  enterprise  for  the 
welfare  of  the  Church  could  go  into  operation 
forthwith. 

l!^o  one  can  speak  too  highly  of  Mr.  Henry 
Muller's  humble  and  devoted  Christianity,  and  of 
his  never-failing  and  munificent  acts  of  bene^^o- 
lence.  ]^ot  only  did  the  Theological  Seminary 
receive  a  very  large  share  of  his  benefactions,  but 
churches,  Sunday-schools,  ministers  of  the  Gospel, 
indigent  students  of  theology,  and  many  other 
persons  were  assisted  by  him  with  amounts  in 
proportion  to  their  necessities,  ^ever  in  travel- 
ing over  seventeen  States  of  our  Union  has  the 
author  seen  Mr.  Muller's  equal  in  every  respect; 
such  members  are  a  blessing  to  any  Church. 

The  amount  of  his  wealth  was  not  enormous ; 
many  there  are  in  almost  any  Synod,  who  possess 
as  much  property,  and  even  more  than  he  did. 
Besides,  Mr.  Muller  had  a  large  family  of  children, 
to  whom  he  gave  all  the  advantages  of  a  most  liberal 
education;  but  he  had  also  a  large  heart,  beaming 


542  THE   LUTHERAN    CHURCH 

with  the  love  of  Christ,  and  regarding  himself 
merely  as  a  steward,  he  was  ready  to  aid  any  and 
every  worthy  object  that  was  presented  to  him. 

As  a  just  tribute  to  his  memory,  the  following 
account  of  his  life  will  not  be  uninteresting: 

Ernest  Henry  David  Muller  was  born  in  the 
Kingdom  of  Saxony,  ITovember  20th,  1774,  and 
was  left  an  orphan  at  the  early  age  of  five  or  six 
years.  He  was  brought  up  in  the  city  of  Bremen  as 
a  merchant,  and  came  with  his  brother  to  America, 
December  16th,  1805,  being  then  in  his  thirty-first 
year.  He  located  himself  at  Granby,  in  Lexing- 
ton District,  and  engaged  in  merchandising,  but 
afterwards  moved  his  place  of  business  to  Sandy 
Run.  He  was  married  to  a  Miss  Geiger,  a  de- 
scendant of  the  early  German  settlers  of  Saxe- 
Gotha  Township,  Lexington  District,  and  resided 
near  Piatt  Springs.  He  was  the  father  of  eleven 
children,  five  sons  and  six  daughters,  nine  of 
whom  survived  him.  He  departed  this  life  in 
great  peace  on  the  12th  of  October,  1850,  aged  75 
years,  10  months  and  22  days. 

"In  him,"  says  the  President  of  Synod,  "the 
Church  has  lost  one  of  its  most  ardent  lovers,  the 
institution  at  Lexington  one  of  its  warmest  friends, 
and  the  Board  of  Directors  one  of  its  most  active 
and  useful  members." 

The  following  preamble  and  resolutions  were 
adopted  by  Synod  in  memory  of  this  mournful 
event: 

"Whereas,  It  has  pleased  the  kind  Disposer  of 
all  human  events  to  remove  from  the  endearments 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  543 

of  his  family  and  friends — from  the  sphere  of 
active  duty  in  society,  and  his  labors  of  love  in  the 
Church — the  late  Henry  Muller,  tlie  Treasurer  of 
our  Seminary;  and  whereas  it  is  a  pious  duty  to 
cherish  the  memory  and  record  for  the  imitation 
of  posterity  the  virtues  of  the  benevolent  and 
pious,  be  it  therefore — 

*'l.  Resolved^  That  this  Synod  will  cherish  the 
memory  of  our  deceased  brother,  whose  whole 
life  was  an  exhibition  of  those  virtues  which 
emphatically  characterize  the  just  man.  That 
they  feel  grateful  for  the  untiring  zeal,  industry 
and  accuracy  with  which  he  performed  the  duties 
of  Treasurer  of  the  Seminary,  from  the  time  when 
the  institution  was  first  organized  until  the  day  of 
his  death — and  that  we  will  ever  bear  in  remem- 
brance his  acts  of  munificence,  by  which  w^e  were 
enabled  to  establish  a  second  professorship  in  the 
Seminary,  and  those  deeds  of  charity  which  char- 
acterized his  whole  life,  which  rendered  him  an 
ornament  to  the  Christian  Church  while  living, 
and  which  will  embalm  his  memory  in  the  hearts 
of  pious  men  of  all  denominations  after  his  re- 
moval from  the  earth. 

*'2.  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  will  use  their  ut- 
most efibrts  to  promote  the  best  interests  of  those 
institutions  in  our  Church  which  our  deceased 
brother  so  strenuously  labored  to  cherish  and  ad- 
vance; and  that  we  feel  thankful  to  the  great 
Head  of  the  Church  that  we  have  enjoyed  the 
benefit  of  being  stimulated  by  so  noble  an  example, 


544  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

who,  althougli  dead,  still  speaketh  to  us  of  the 
high  and  holy  duty  of  Christian  beneiicence. 

"3.  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  secure  to  the 
family  of  the  deceased  Henry  Muller,  and  their 
descendants,  one  scholarship  for  the  Seminary,  as 
long  as  the  institution  continues  to  exist. 

"4.  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  express  their  sym- 
pathy and  condolence  with  the  bereaved  family  of 
the  deceased;  that  the  Secretary  transmit  a  copy 
of  these  resolutions  to  the  bereaved  widow  and 
mourning  famih^  of  the  deceased,  and  that  they  be 
published  in  our  minutes  and  in  the  Lutheran 
Observer." 


Section  7.  Colony  of  Gennan  Settlers  at  Wcdhalla, 
S.  C. — Additional  New  Congregations  organized 
—  The  Mississi'ppi  and  Texas  Missions. 

The  number  of  German  settlers  in  Charleston, 
S.  C,  having  increased  rapidly  within  the  past 
few  years,  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  locate  a 
German  colony  somewhere  in  the  interior  of  the 
State.  Accordingly,  about  the  year  1850,  a  land 
company  w^as  formed  among  the  Germans  resid- 
ing in  Charleston,  through  the  energetic  labors  of 
Col.  John  A.  AYagener,  a  public-spirited  and  en- 
terprising German,  and  a  large  body  of  land  was 
purchased  in  Pickens  District,  S.  C,  of  Col. 
Gresham  and  others. 

The  land  was  admirably  located,  being  in  the 
mountain  regions  of  Carolina,  exceedingly  fertile 
and  well  adapted  for  the  cultivation  of  all  the  nee- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH    CAROLINA.  545 

essiiry  cereals,  fruits  and  vegetables,  with  an  abun- 
dant supply  of  excellent  water,  free  from  the  heat 
of  less  elevated  latitudes,  and  possessing  a  most 
salubrious  climate,  making  this  settlement  a  most 
desirable  summer  retreat  for  strano^ers  from  the 
low  country.  A  town  was  soon  laid  out,  and  re- 
ceived the  ancient  German  name,  Walhalla,  and 
the  remaining  Land  was  divided  into  farms  and 
sold  to  German  settlers.  So  rapidly  did  the  popu- 
lation in  the  new  settlement  increase,  that  Wal- 
halla  has  become  a  place  of  importance,  even  to 
native  American  citizens.  It  has,  of  course,  a 
Lutheran  church,  for  nearly  all  the  original  set- 
tlers are  of  that  faith.  This  church  was  erected 
in  1855,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  C.  F.  Bau- 
semer;  it  was  built  w^ith  a  spire  112  feet  in  height; 
but  there  are  three  churches  of  other  denomina- 
tions likewise  located  in  the  town.  ^N'ewberry 
College,  the  literary  institution  of  the  Lutheran 
Sj'nod  of  South  Carolina,  has  been  recently  re- 
moved to  Walhalla,  all  of  which,  with  its  Female 
Seminary,  its  trade  and  its  abundant  railroad  fa- 
cilities, will  make  Walhalla  eventuall}^  one  of  the 
largest  inland  towns  in  the  mountain  districts  of 
Carolina.  It  numbers  now  about  1500  inhabitants, 
and  has  recently  become  the  county  seat  of  Oconee 
County,  a  newly-formed  judicial  section  of  the 
State. 

In  North  Carolina,  under  the  ministry  of  Rev. 
W.  G.  Ilarter,  a  new  Lutheran  cljurch  was  erected 
in  the  town  of  Concord,  and  the  Lutheran  portion 
of  the  old  Coldwater  Creek  congregation  trans- 

46 


546  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

planted  thither,  receiving  the  name  St.  James  at 
the  day  of  its  dedication,  which  event  occurred  on 
the  6th  of  April,  1843.  The  dedication  sermon 
was  preached  by  Eev.  Henry  Graeber  from  the 
text  Luke  14  :  23 :  "  Compel  them  to  come  in,  that 
my  house  may  be  filled." 

In  the  year  1850,  a  new  congregation  was  or- 
ganized in  Rowan  County,  iST.  C,  "seven  miles 
from  Salisbury,  on  the  Beattie's  Ford  Eoad,  with 
twenty-two  members,"  under  the  ministry  of  Rev. 
B.  E".  Hopkins.  It  afterwards  received  the  name 
of  Salem  Church.  In  the  town  of  Newton,  Ca- 
tawba County,  a  new  mission  church  was  estab- 
lished during  the  same  year. 

The  Church  in  Korth  Carolina  under  the  care 
of  the  Tennessee  Synod  became  also  greatly  en- 
larged, but  it  is  impossible  to  particularize  the 
organization  of  new  congregations,  inasmuch  as 
these  items  are  not  reported  in  the  minutes  of  that 
time. 

"  On  the  fourth  Sabbath  in  May,"  1842,  "a  new 
Lutheran  church  by  the  name  of  Corinth,  in  the 
District  of  Edgefield,  S.  C,  was  dedicated  to  the 
service  of  the  triune  God.  The  dedicatory  ser- 
mon was  preached  by  Rev.  G.  Haltiwanger,  Sr., 
and  a  sermon  by  Rev.  Wm.  Berly  on  the  doctrines, 
government  and  usages  of  the  Lutheran  Church 
in  this  country.  Rev.  Messrs.  Aull  and  Leppard 
were  present  on  the  occasion,  and  rendered  their 
appropriate  share  of  service." 

In  1843,  under  the  ministry  of  Rev.  G.  H. 
Brown,  a  new  Lutheran  congregation  was  organ- 


IN  NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  547 

ized  and  a  church  erected  in  Kewberry  District, 
S.  C,  receiving  the  name  of  Beth-Eden.  It  was 
dedicated  on  the  second  Sunday  in  September; 
the  ministers  present  on  that  occasion  were  Revs. 
J.  C.  Hope,  H.  Aull  and  the  pastor  in  charge. 

"Another  church  building  was  erected  by  the 
St.  Matthew's  congregation,  to  be  a  branch  of  the 
old  church,  which  was  dedicated  to  the  service  of 
the  triune  God  on  Sunday,  the  26th  of  March, 
1843.  Brethren  in  attendance — pastor  in  charge 
and  Brother  Sheppard.  This  constitutes  one  of 
the  three  churches  connected  with  St.  Matthews," 
in  Orangeburg  District,  S.  C. 

St.  David's  Church,  in  Lexington  District,  S.  C, 
was  organized  and  received  in  connection  with 
the  South  Carolina  Synod  in  1845. 

In  1849  three  new  churches  were  dedicated  for 
newly-organized  Lutheran  congregations  in  South 
Carolina,  namely,  one  located  on  the  Monk's 
Corner  Road,  St.  Matthew's  Parish,  Orangeburg 
District,  on  the  first  Sunday  in  June.  It  is  pre- 
sumed that  this  is  the  church  called  "Trinity 
Church.'' 

Macedonia  Church,  in  Lexington  District,  was 
dedicated  on  the  fourth  Sunday  in  September  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Berly. 

Another  church,  near  Leesville,  S.  C,  was  con- 
secrated on  the  fourth  Sunday  in  October  by  Revs. 
S.  Bouknight,  S.  R.  Sheppard  and  J.  B.  Lowman. 

The  Mississippi  mission  was  commenced  by  the 
Synod  of  South  Carolina  in  the  year  1846,  when 
the  Rev.  G.  H.  Brown  resigned  his  pleasant  Beth- 


548  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Eden  charge,  and  from  conscientious  convictions 
of  duty  felt  himself  called  to  labor  for  the  Church 
in  that  promising  field,  where  Lutheran  colonists 
from  ^North  and  South  Carolina  had  located  them- 
selves. The  new  missionary  enterprise  was  not  a 
mere  experiment,  for,  "  after  many  discourage- 
ments and  severe  trials,"  it  became  eminently  suc- 
cessful; the  Lord  blessed  the  labors  of  his  faithful 
servant,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Brown,  who  had  not  been 
long  in  Mississippi  when  he  called  for  more  laborers, 
and  in  1847,  the  Rev.  James  D.  Stingley  came  to 
his  assistance,  who  was  soon  followed  by  the  Revs. 
S.  R.  Sheppard,  C.  D.  Austin  and  J.  T.  Warner. 
A  Synod  was  formed  in  that  State  in  1855,  and 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  Mississippi,  after  having 
overcome  many  difficulties,  appears  at  present  to 
be  in  a  prosperous  condition.  The  Revs.  Brown, 
Stingley  and  Sheppard  have  all  been  called  to 
their  final  rest  and  reward,  but  their  works  still 
follow  them. 

In  the  year  1850,  the  South  Carolina  Synod 
sent  the  Rev.  George  F.  Guebner  as  a  missionary 
to  the  State  of  Texas,  who,  at  first,  traveled  over 
a  considerable  portion  of  its  territory,  organizing 
congregations,  but  finally  located  himself  in  the 
city  of  Galveston.  Rev.  Guebner  remained  there 
but  a  few  years,  when  his  health  failed  him,  and 
he  removed  to  one  of  the  ISTorthwestern  States, 
residing,  a  few  years  ago,  in  the  State  of  Lidiana, 
and  being  in  connection  with  the  Evangelical 
Union  of  the  West.  The  Texas  mission,  however, 
is  not  a  failure;   ministers  from  Germany  located 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  549 

themselves  there  soon  afterwards,  and  in  consider- 
able numbers,  who  now  have  a  flourishing  Synod 
in  that  State. 


Section  8.  State  of  the  Lidheran  Church  in  the  Caro- 
linaSj  in  the  year  1850. 

During  the  twenty-five  or  thirty  years  preceding 
the  year  1850,  the  Lutheran  Church  in  North  and 
South  Carolina  made  rapid  progress  in  almost 
every  respect,  and  without  any  material  addition 
to  her  strength  by  foreign  immigration,  yea,  even 
with  a  constant  drain  upon  her  strength  by  the 
removal  of  man^^  of  her  members  to  the  West. 
Nor  has  she  ever  made  any  effort  to  propagate 
her  doctrines  legitimatel}'  among  those  of  no 
ecclesiastical  connection,  but  rather  shrank  from 
all  public  notoriety,  modestly  laboring  for  the 
good  of  those,  whom  God  had  specially  committed 
to  her  care;  she  has,  notwithstanding,  accom- 
plished an  amount  of  good  fully  equal  to  the  talent 
intrusted  to  her  keeping.  God  has  upheld  her  by 
His  own  right  hand,  and  preserved  her  for  a  work 
and  purpose  that  will  glorify  His  name;  and,  judg- 
ing from  the  past,  will  make  her  future  still  more 
prosperous. 

In  1820,  when  the  Tennessee  Synod  was  organ- 
ized, only  five  ministers  became  connected  with 
it;  and  in  1850  the  number  had  increased  to 
twenty-eight  ministers,  and,  had  not  other  Synods 
been  formed,  with  which  some  of  its  ministers  be- 


550  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

came  conuectecl,  the  increase  on  its  clerical  roll 
would  have  been  much  larger. 

The  principal  additions  to  its  number  of  minis- 
ters since  1840,  were  Revs.  John  Roth  and  Joel 
W.  Hull,  who  were  ordained  as  deacons,  Decem- 
ber 13th,  1841 ;  Rev.  Dennis  D.  Swanej^,  ordained 
as  deacon  in  1842;  Revs.  Jesse  R.  Peterson,  Poly- 
carp  C.  Ilenkel,  Jacob  M.  SchaefFer,  who  were 
ordained  to  the  office  of  deacon,  October  5th,  1843; 
Revs.  J.  M.  Wagner,  Timothy  Moser,  ordained  to 
the  same  office,  October  10th,  1844;  Revs.  James 
K.  Handier,  Thomas  Grouse,  ordained  as  deacons 
in  1845;  Rev.  Adam  Efird,  ordained  as  above  in 
1847;  Rev.  D.  M.  Henkel,  ordained  October  5th, 
1848;  Revs.  Socrates  Henkel,  D.  Efird,  J.  B.  Em- 
mert,  and  James  Fleenor,  ordained  to  the  deacon's 
office  in  1850.  Of  these,  Revs.  Hull,  Peterson, 
P.  C.  Henkel,  T.  Moser,  T.  Grouse,  A.  Efird,  and 
D.  Efird,  were  laboring  in  North  Garolina  in  1850. 
The  Efird  brothers  soon  afterwards  removed  to 
South  Garolina,  and  Rev.  J.  M.  Wagner  subse- 
quently labored  several  years  in  [N'orth  Garolina. 
Rev.  Adam  Efird  has  since  departed  this  life,  Sep- 
tember 13th,  1870. 

The  North  Garolina  Synod  was  likewise  largely 
increased  by  an  addition  of  ministerial  strength, 
but  the  number  of  its  ministers  became  greatly 
reduced  in  1842,  by  the  organization  of  the  West- 
ern Virginia  Synod,  at  which  time  the  North 
Garolina  Synod  became  restricted  within  the 
limits  of  its  own  proper  State  boundary,  whilst  at 
the  same  time,  nearly  one-half  of  the  strength  of 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  551 

the  Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina  is  em- 
braced in  the  Tennessee  Synod. 

The  ministers  who  connected  themselves  with 
the  North  Carolina  Synod  since  1840,  were  the 
following: 

Rev.  John  D.  Scheck,  of  the  South  Carolina 
Synod,  who  became  the  pastor  successively  of  the 
Salisbury,  St.  John's,  Cabarrus  County,  and  the 
Alamance  pastorates.  During  his  ministry,  and 
in  1845,  the  large  brick  St.  John's  Church,  in  Ca- 
barrus County,  was  erected,  and  was  dedicated 
August  22d,  1846.  Its  dimensions  are  eighty  by 
iifty-five  feet,  and  is  at  present  the  fifth  house  of 
worship,  which  has  been  built  for  this  congrega- 
tion, since  the  first  settlement  of  Germans  on  Buf- 
falo Creek,  and  was  considered  at  the  time  the 
largest  and  most  commodious  house  of  worship  in 
Western  North  CaroUna. 

Bev.  WilUcwi  G.  JIarier,  also  from  the  South 
Carolina  Synod,  became  the  pastor  of  the  Concord 
Church,  whose  history  has  already  been  men- 
tioned. 

Bev.  Joseph  A.  Linn,  a  student  both  at  Lexing- 
ton, South  Carolina,  and  Gettysburg,  Pennsylva- 
nia, and  licensed  in  1844,  became  the  pastor  of  the 
Gold  Hill  charge,  in  Kowan  County,  where  he 
was  much  beloved,  and  generally  useful  to  the 
Lutheran  Church  in  North  Carolina.  His  death 
was  a  sad  one  :  returning  home  on  Sunday  from 
one  of  his  churches,  he  was  thrown  from  his  horse, 
which  fractured  his  head,  and  he  expired  the  fol- 
lowing Wednesday,  March  16th,  1864. 

Bev.  J,  B.  Anthony  was  received  by  the  North 


552  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

Carolina  Synod  May  6th,  1844,  and  labored  some 
twent}^  years  in  the  bounds  of  the  ^orth  and  South 
Carolina  Synods,  but  is  at  present  residing  in  the 
State  of  Pennsylvania,  as  pastor  of  the  York  Sul- 
phur Springs  charge. 

Revs.  Fink,  Coflman,  and  Hopkins  were  added 
to  the  list  of  ministers  successively  in  1847,  1848, 
and  1849,  but  their  names  had  soon  to  be  stricken 
from  the  roll. 

Rev.  Levi  C.  Groseclose,  a  student  from  Lexing- 
ton, S.  C,  and  Gettysburg,  Pennsylvania,  was  li- 
censed in  1849  by  the  West  V^irginia  Synod,  and 
has  been  doing  good  service  in  the  i^orth  Carolina 
Synod  since  1850,  being  at  present  the  pastor  of 
the  St.  John's  charge  in  Cabarrus  County,  !N^.  C. 

The  Synod  of  South  Carolina  manifested  at  this 
time  a  more  rapid  growth  and  a  greater  degree  of 
prosperity  than  either  the  [N^orth  Carolina  or  Ten- 
nessee Synods;  this  was  owing  to  its  Theological 
Seminary  and  extensive  missionary  operations 
outside  of  the  limits  of  the  State.  In  1824  this 
Synod  was  organized  with  seven  ministers,  and  in 
1849  it  had  forty-six  ordained  and  licensed  minis- 
ters on  its  clerical  roll;  however,  this  number  has 
since  been  reduced  by  the  formation  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi and  Georgia  Synods. 

During  the  ten  years  preceding  the  year  1850, 
the  following  ministers  were  added  to  the  clerical 
strength  of  the  South  Carolina  Sjniod : 

Bev.  John  F.  W.  Lepjxird^  who  was  licensed  No- 
vember 30th,  1841,  was  the  pastor  of  St.  Stephen's 
Church,  Lexington  Court-House,  and  Sandy  Run 


IN   NORTH    AND    SOUTH    CAROLINA.  553 

Church.  He  was  adjunct  Professor  of  Theology 
at  the  Lexington  Seminary  during  the  years  1848 
and  1849;  he  was  an  eloquent  preacher,  and  a 
man  greatly  beloved,  but  departed  this  life,  Feb- 
ruary 13th,  1852. 

Bev.  P.  Kistler  was  licensed  at  the  same  time, 
and  labored  successively  in  South  and  Korth  Caro- 
lina. He  has  connected  himself  with  another  de- 
nomination. 

Rev.  C,  F.  Bansemer  entered  the  ministry,  Feb- 
ruary 20th,  1842 ;  was  for  several  years  pastor  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  Walhalla,  S.  C,  and  Pres- 
ident of  JSTorth  Carolina  College,  at  Mt.  Pleasant, 
K  C,  in  1867  and  1868. 

Bev.  F.  W.  Heemsoth  w^as  received  as  a  member 
of  Synod  in  1842;  was  pastor  of  the  German  Lu- 
theran Church  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  but  returned 
to  Germany  in  1848. 

Bev.  Elias  B.  Hort  was  licensed  in  1842;  became 
the  pastor  of  the  Lutheran  Church  in  Columbia, 
S.  C,  where  he  remained  in  office  to  the  close  of 
his  life.     He  died  January  15th,  1863. 

Bev.  George  H.  Brown's  history  has  been  given; 
he  was  licensed  in  1842. 

Bevs.  George  B.  Haigler  and  James  H.  Bailey 
were  licensed  ^N'ovember  11th,  1845.  The  former 
labored  for  a  time  in  St.  Matthew's  Parish,  Orange- 
burg District,  after  which  he  removed  to  Alabama. 
The  latter  is  still  doing  good  service  in  Lexington 
County,  S.  C. 

Bev.  L.  3iiUler,  admitted  as  a  member  of  Synod 
in  1848.     He  is  still  the  pastor  of  St.  Matthew's 

47 


554  THE    LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

German  Lutheran  Church  in  Charleston,  S.  C. 
His  congregation  has  recently  built  a  large  and 
magnificent  church  edifice,  which  was  dedicated 
March  28th,  1872. 

Eevs.  E.  Elmore,  Eph.  KiefiTer,  J.  B.  Lowman,  B. 
^N".  Hopkins  and  Ephraim  DufFord,  were  licensed 
JSTovember  24th,  1848.  Revs.  Elmore  and  Kiefl:er 
labored  in  Georgia;  Eevs.  Lowman  and  DufiPord 
are  still  laboring  in  South  Carolina. 

Rev.  A.  J.  Karn  became  the  pastor  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church  at  Savannah,  Georgia,  in  1848,  and 
connected  himself  with  the  South  Carolina  Synod 
the  next  year.  "He  died  December  19th,  18G0, 
in  Chicago,  Illinois,  aged  forty  years." 

Revs.  George  F.  Guebner,  G.  D.  Bernheim, 
Mark  Posey,  C.  D.  Austin,  E.  Caughman,  A.  W. 
Lindler,  D.  Sheely  and  S.  W.  Bedenbaugh,  were 
admitted  to  the  ministry  November  14th,  1849, 
all  of  whom  are  still  living  except  Rev.  Posey,  who 
died  at  Franconia,  Alabama,  August  26th,  1852. 
Revs.  Caughman,  Lindler  and  Sheely  are  still 
laboring  in  South  Carolina ;  Rev.  Bedenbaugh  in 
Georgia.  The  history  of  the  others  has  already 
been  furnished,  all  of  whom  are  still  actively  en- 
gaged in  the  work  of  the  ministry. 


Section  9.  Concluding  Remarks. 

Li  order  to  understand  the  age  in  which  we  live, 
it  is  important  and  necessary  that  we  should  care- 
fully study  the  history  of  the  past.     The  various 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  555 

and  succeeding  epochs  of  the  world  are  not  a  num- 
ber of  disjointed  parts  rudely  thrown  together, 
which  might  as  well  have  happened  at  some  other 
time,  but  a  successive  course  of  events  all  occur- 
ring "when  the  fulness  of  time  was  come." 

The  present  is  a  development  of  the  past;  it  is 
the  child  of  a  parent  that  has  stamped  upon  it 
many  of  the  characteristics  and  manifestations  ot 
the  past.  And  as  individuals  are  possessed  of  vir- 
tues and  faults,  so  is  every  age  in  which  man  lives 
an  intermixture  of  excellencies  and  errors,  which 
the  study  of  history  enables  us  to  discover,  so  that 
we  may  walk  in  the  light  of  the  one,  and  studi- 
ously avoid  the  other. 

In  ecclesiastical  affairs  it  is  equally  important 
and  even  more  necessary  diligently  to  study  the 
history  of  the  past,  inasmuch  as  an  error  com- 
mitted in  the  Church  invariably  leads  to  eternally 
fatal  consequences.  And  that  departures  and 
errors  have  occurred  in  the  Church  is  well  known; 
these  should  be  ever  kept  in  view,  like  so  many 
pillars  of  salt,  with  "Kemember  Lot's  wife  "  in- 
scribed upon  them,  so  as  to  apprise  us  of  our  dan- 
gers, and  point  out  to  us  the  path  of  safety. 

We  can  become  wiser  than  our  forefathers,  only 
when  we  have  mastered  their  knowledge  and  ex- 
perience, and  add  our  own  thereto ;  but  never  by 
obliterating  the  past,  and  starting  upon  a  career 
in  the  world,  unprepared  to  meet  and  avoid  its 
dangers,  and  unfitted  to  take  advantage  of  the  op- 
portunities it  offers  us. 

As  the  Lutheran  Church  professes  to  be,  and  is, 


556  THE   LUTHERAN   CHURCH 

in  intimate  connection  with  the  past,  let  her  not 
unwisely  assume  the  character  and  put  on  the  garb 
of  infancy,  casting  away  her  priceless  history  and 
experience,  and  starting  upon  a  voyage  on  the 
ocean  of  life  without  compass,  rudder,  anchor,  or 
chart. 

These  thoughts  apply  equally  as  well  to  the 
local  history  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  Here  in 
America,  yes  in  every  Province  or  State,  events 
have  occurred  which  have  had  their  influence 
upon  her  character,  and  which  it  is  our  duty  to 
know  and  to  study.  Had  there  been  no  depar- 
tures either  in  faith  or  practice,  there  would  never 
have  been  any  divisions;  this  is  a  truth  which  ec- 
clesiastical history  teaches  us  on  almost  every 
page.  It  was  once  thought  wise  and  praiseworthy 
to  cast  aside  the  shackles  of  the  past,  by  which  the 
Lutheran  Church  was  believed  to  have  been  en- 
slaved, and  start  her  upon  a  new  career  with  im- 
proved doctrines,  altered  forms  of  worship  and  a 
new  cultus;  but  events  have  proved,  that  nothing 
has  been  gained  by  this  departure,  but  rather — that 
thereby  she  "  was  wounded  in  the  house  of  her 
friends." 

It  is  needless  now  to  conceal  the  divisions  that 
are  apparent  in  the  Lutheran  Church  in  the  Caro- 
linas,  as  well  as  in  America — they  do  exist;  and 
all  our  lamentations,  &c.,  cannot  heal  them;  they 
are  the  legitimate  developments  of  the  past;  let 
us  rather  study  them  in  the  light  of  past  experi- 
ence, in  order  that  we  may  discover  the  mistakes 
then  made,  which  prepared  the  way  for  such  di- 


IN   NORTH    AND   SOUTH   CAROLINA.  557 

visions,  and  endeavor  to  heal  them  at  their  very 
root.  Let  us  no  longer  make  the  attempt  "to 
agree  to  disagree,"  but  honestly  ask  for  the  old 
paths,  diligently  study  "  the  faith  once  delivered 
to  the  saints,"  so  that  we  may  intelligently  and 
"  earnestly  contend  for  it;"  let  us  in  this  way  seek 
to  become  united  in  faith  and  practice,  not  from 
motives  of  policy,  but  as  an  honest  conviction  of 
duty. 

May  then  also  this  lustory  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  the  Carolinas  inspire  our  people  and 
their  ministers  with  a  greater  respect  for  their 
time-honored  Church,  and  build  upon  the  founda- 
tion which  their  forefathers  in  the  days  of  the  Re- 
formers have  laid,  and  do  this  with  such  a  zeal 
and  energy,  as  proceeds  only  from  a  conscientious 
conviction  of  duty;  then  indeed  will  their  labor  be 
productive  both  of  the  dissemination  of  the  pure 
doctrines  of  God's  word,  and  of  the  glory  of  God 
in  the  advancement  of  our  Savior's  kingdom  on 
earth.  The  fact,  that  inquiry  has  been  awakened 
in  regard  to  these  things  in  the  Lutheran  Church 
both  in  Europe  and  in  every  section  in  America, 
is  a  hopeful  indication  of  her  future  healthy  devel- 
opment, and  of  her  increased  activity  and  pros- 
perity. 

"  Thou  shalt  arise  and  have  mercy  upon  Zion  : 
for  the  time  to  favor  her,  yea,  the  set  time,  is  come. 
For  thy  servants  take  pleasure  in  her  stones,  and 
favor  the  dust  thereof."  Psalm  102  :  13  and  14. 

THE    END. 


DATE  DUE 


MA^^tm 

GAYLORD 

PRINTEDINU    S    A. 

